Thanks to Our 2010 Retirees

Congratulations to all of the employees who are retiring this year. I would like to commend for your excellent service to this school system, in all of the varying capacities you have served. Of the 191 staff members retiring, I thank you for the 4,060 years total you have given to Chesterfield County Public Schools, and I applaud you for the 5,390 years total service to education you’ve given during your careers.

Yesterday we recognized many of the retiring employees at a reception held at Thomas Dale. I would like to share with you some comments that I made to our 2010 “graduating class.”

Retirement is a change – a big change. You are entering a new part of your journey, trying out your retirement wings, deciding what’s next in your life.

Those of us remaining in Chesterfield County Public Schools will also be entering a new phase: the phase of trying to get along without all of our talented and dedicated colleagues who are retiring this year. It will not be easy – we will miss you. Oh boy, will we miss you!

You may not miss us – at least not right away. But I believe that you will find your way back into our schools as volunteer mentors, reading buddies, coaches and more. After all, where would we be without you?

Your work and your vision and your energy have transformed Chesterfield County Public Schools into a high-achieving, award-winning school system. Our students are succeeding at high levels today because of you. Thank you. Thank you for your contributions in our schools, for our students and for this community. I am grateful for you.

Finally, I’d like to share one more quotation with you. This comes from Mark Twain and I think it is excellent advice for all of us, whether we are retiring or not retiring:

“Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn't do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.”