JStew & Cori Celebrate “Favorite” Teachers This Teacher Appreciation Week…

Aside from perhaps your parents and siblings, teachers are undoubtedly people in our lives who, from a very young age, help to shape us into the individuals we ultimately become when we're adults.

We asked you who some of your favorite and most influential educators were growing up, and we weighed in with our picks!

JStew: When I was in school, I was lucky. My best subject was English, so I took a lot of extra English classes. In my high school, I always thought the coolest teacher was Mr. David Jackson. He was an odd man in a lot of ways, and that really spoke to me at the time, as I felt pretty odd. It was the 90's, and while everyone was wearing the latest weird 90's fashion, Mr. Jackson wore loud shirts with big 70's ties. His blazers were often at least that old. He drove an old 70's Buick that was about 100 feet long. My sister had him in school too. One time, he was not happy with the kind of attention that the class was paying, so he stood in the trashcan and taught from there. He was willing to go the miracle mile to teach you if you wanted to learn. As opposed to the other English teacher I had who slapped me across the back in front of the entire class. She sucked, hahaha. Also, I have to give a special shout-out to Pat Michaud, my band director in high school. Extremely patient man who taught me a LOT about playing with other musicians. Can't thank that guy enough.

Cori: There were a few teachers who were the "cool" ones in High School. The only one that I actually had a class with, in my opinion, was the coolest! Dr. Fred Jones taught Honors English at Bapst. He was huge into the stone circles and mounds that pepper England, Ireland, and Scotland. It was fascinating to hear him talk about the subject with such passion. He even wrote a book about them called "Chasing the Sun: A Journey in Neolithic Speculation.” Dr. Jones was also the organist and choirmaster at St. John's Episcopal Church, which was right behind John Bapst. Every Friday he would take us on a walk over to the church, invite us to relax in one of the pews, and proceed to play the organ for us for the duration of that class. I think he knew the power that music had to center and relieve stress, and he knew we were all putting such pressure on ourselves, academically, that it was a way he could help us decompress while sharing his talent. I learned a lot from him. We read everything from The Bible to "Beowulf", to Chaucer's "The Canterbury Tales" in that class. But I also learned the importance of taking a moment to relax and center yourself when you feel stressed out. That's an important lesson, for sure.

I owe a lot to my elementary school music teacher, Jan Smith, and my High School music teacher, Neia Rhodes. They inspired in me a love of music.

My 3rd-grade teacher, Mr. Rackliff taught me about empathy and patience.

And my kindergarten teacher, Val Kane, gave me my first crack at public speaking when she cast me as the narrator of the "Three Little Pigs" play.

Get our free mobile app

Now that I have kids of my own, there's another set of influential teachers I have to thank. While there are many amazing teachers my kids are lucky enough to have crossed paths with, two stand out as having such a positive impact on them.

The first is Vanessa Rehmeyer. Rehmeyer is a middle school science teacher at All Saints Catholic School.

She also coaches the cross-country team and is an overall amazing example of a working mom, wife, and educator. Rehmeyer has a great sense of humor and a gentle way about her. She encourages her students to aim high while inspiring in them a wonderful level of confidence. She finds ways to lift up each student, by noticing what their strengths are and building upon those, rather than constantly dwelling on their challenges. She has a way of making kids feel seen and heard, each one of them. I have seen how empowering that mindset can be in my girls. I am glad my daughters have her to look up to, to challenge them, and to set the bar for excellence. I am grateful for her work and influence in their lives.

The second is Stephen Riitano. Riitano is a High School History and Finance teacher at Bangor High. He is also a driving instructor (God love him!)

I first met Riitano when he was my son's Middle School social studies teacher at the James F. Doughty School. His enthusiasm, kindness, and immense capacity for patience and empathy made him an instant favorite among all of the middle school kids. Riitano would show up to school, every day, in a shirt and tie, inspiring middle school boys to put in the extra effort to take pride in their appearance (something that anyone with Middle School boys understands can be a challenge!) Always going the extra mile, he often checks in on students to make sure they aren't struggling, and if they are, he always finds a way to get them back on track. Involved in fundraising projects and student activities, his most notable project of late has been the effort to find the 5th Street School time capsule. I am grateful for his endless energy, his positive attitude and for the care he has for his students.

We asked you which teachers, in your life, made a difference. There are some cool teachers on this list. Thanks for honoring them with us this week.