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AMAZING MEMBERS
Reaching Platinum
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By Barbara Corder, KS Immediate Past President
t was only my third year of teaching when Agnes Shipman Robertson came to my classroom door and asked if I would be interested in joining Alpha Delta Kappa. She was very convincing. I said yes and gave her my $5 pledge fee.” That is how Platinum Sister Retabess Ling was introduced to the fraternity she has participated in for seventy years. She was nineteen when she joined the newly formed KS Eta chapter in a formal ceremony at the Hotel Kelley in Iola. After the Eta chapter disbanded, Retabess became a sustaining member. She recalls chapter meetings as mainly social gatherings. She commented that it was great to meet and be with other teachers from all over the county. Before becoming members, city and rural teachers had no opportunity to meet one another and share ideas. A group of Kansas sisters traveled to Iola in June and, along with former Eta chapter members and her family members, celebrated the anniversary with Retabess. The International Headquarters staff found the original forms she signed to join in an unused file cabinet. Photos of the forms, congratulatory cards
and other mementos were presented to Retabess. Her platinum sister guard and a certificate were given by the KS state executive board. The ninety-year-old is the second Kansas Platinum Sister. After graduating from high school at sixteen, Retabess began her teaching career in a one room schoolhouse in the Waverly School District in Allen County, KS. The eight hours of college credit she earned in the summer and the shortage of teachers following World War II made her eligible to teach. She had seven students. One of the boys was fourteen, just two years younger than his teacher. She was the teacher and the janitor, which included cleaning the outdoor privies and carrying in coal and drinking water. Her salary was $1,000 a year. Retabess taught for 44 years, first in one-room schools and then in grades four through six in elementary schools. For ten years, she was an art teacher. Retabess earned her Bachelor’s and Master of Science degrees from the Emporia State Teachers College, now Emporia State University. Retabess is a widow. She says, “I am treated like a princess by my eight grandchildren and nineteen great grandchildren.”
Diversity in the Arts, Theme of PA Conference Pennsylvania Gamma sisters selected “Diversity in the Arts and Beyond” as the theme for the spring PA Eastern District Conference. The goal was to present a virtual program that would stimulate, engage and entertain while talking about diversity and its many forms. All sessions were planned and led by members of PA Gamma. Keynote speaker Marilyn Rodriguez is the youth arts director for Taller Puertorriqueno, an arts and culture organization with after school programs for children and youth in Philadelphia, PA. In her presentation, Marilyn explained how she incorporates her Latino background into art activities in “Exploring Identity Through the Arts.” Taller, now in its forty-fifth year of “using art to promote development within its community and the Latino Diaspora and to build a bridge to the Greater Philadelphia area” was chosen by Gamma as the conference’s altruistic project. Sisters purchased and donated art supplies to the program.
Inez Recupido opened the conference with “Your Name,” an activity that encouraged participants to think about the origins of their given names. Attendees had the opportunity to participate in three other sessions. Shalon Doctor and Genina Etlen led a discussion of the book, “Caste: The Origins of Our Discontent,” by Isabel Wilkerson. In the session led by Magna Diaz, members created a graphic design using their name, chapter or any meaningful work or shape. The final activity, “Bach, BTS and Beyond: Diversity in Music Education,” was presented by Celina Velez. A classically trained musician, Celina described how she exposes her students to all music genres from classical to modern. She also described the challenges and importance of virtual and hybrid teaching of music. Information for article provided by Eleanor Smith, PA Gamma, PA Past State President 2008-2010
“We make a living by what we get, but we make a life by what we give.” ~ Winston Churchill, former British Prime Minister Audrey Mitchell, Jamaica Beta 22
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