Posted 1:27 PM by Susan Darst Williams

GIVING THANKS FOR GOOD TEACHERS

Bret Williams, a fifth-grade teacher in the Blair (Neb.) Community Schools, is the winner of Go Big Ed’s “Give Thanks for Teachers” award. He and his wife, Jennifer, will receive dinner for two in the restaurant of their choice.

Williams, who also coaches football in Blair, is a popular teacher who formerly taught fourth grade at Skyline Elementary School in Elkhorn. He and his wife had their first child this past summer, and Zane was born with spina bifida.

The baby has required seven surgeries, and medical bills could exceed $1 million in this first year alone. Although insurance is covering most of those costs, household expenses associated with the baby’s condition are mounting.

As news spread of this difficulty, the Blair community has come around the family to help in many ways, and Williams’ old pupils at Skyline put on a drive for household items that was much appreciated.

Now the rest of us -- parents, taxpayers and educators united in improving the quality of Nebraska’s education system -- are chiming in with a token of our support and esteem.

We give thanks for you, Bret, and for the many, many teachers like you who come into the hearts of our children, and stay there.

To all readers: God bless you and yours this Thanksgiving. Go Big Ed will resume on Monday.

Meantime, how ‘bout those Husker seniors! Good luck in your last home game. Go Big Red!