Schools

Teacher, Students Reconnect, Say Goodbye at La Salette

"This affected our whole life," Huntington Woods resident Dianne Cook says of the classroom where she taught from 1969 to 1976 at the shuttered Berkley school.

Editor's note: This story is part of a weeklong series about the impact of the Archdiocese of Detroit's decision to close of Our Lady of La Salette Catholic School and Academy in Berkley, which served pre-kindergarten through eighth-grade students, at the end of the 2012-2013 academic year.

"My room looks great!" Dianne Cook exclaimed.

The Huntington Woods resident had popped in to visit her first classroom as a teacher during an alumni reunion and open house June 8 at Our Lady of La Salette Catholic School and Academy in Berkley.

Find out what's happening in Huntington Woods-Berkleywith free, real-time updates from Patch.

The layout had changed, but Cook said she still could remember where everyone sat in 1969 – the year the first person landed on the moon, Richard Nixon became president and she began her first teaching job as a Western Michigan University graduate.

Cries of delight and hugs ensued after two of her former students from that first year – Class of 1973 graduates Cathleen Nolan of Ferndale and Karen Botham of Shelby Township – wandered into the classroom.

Find out what's happening in Huntington Woods-Berkleywith free, real-time updates from Patch.

"She was super helpful to us," Nolan said of Cook, as the three women reminisced about tough nuns, first communions, the fates of former students and the fact that Cook taught most-recent Principal Dan Terbrack's father Roy when he attended La Salette.

On an even more personal note, Cook recalled how her older daughter attended the school through fifth grade and how La Salette students took her younger daughter, who had Down Syndrome, under their collective wing when she would come to visit.

"It's 7 years of my life that's disappearing. It's a big hole," Cook said. "Even though I haven't taught here since 1976, I could drive by here and say, 'What are my babies doing?' This affected our whole life."

Coming Wednesday: Take a walk down memory lane with Class of 1950 graduate Sylvia Philippi Soullier.


Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.

We’ve removed the ability to reply as we work to make improvements. Learn more here

More from Huntington Woods-Berkley