From Hidden Brain Media, I'm Shankar Vedanthe. This is my unsung hero, stories where one person

reached out to help another in a time of need. It's Teacher Appreciation Week, so all week we are

bringing your stories about educators who made a powerful impact on the lives of their

students. My unsung hero was a teacher's assistant named Max in the spring of that.

He would refer me to books and stories and I really became an avid reader at that point of money.

I still remember that day in the hallway of just my teacher being like I know what's going on and you're going to be okay.

Today's story is a favorite from our archive. It comes from Tony Ludlow. When Tony was an

eighth grade at a school in Fort Smith, Arkansas, he had an English teacher named

Cecil Holman. She was the first black woman he had ever had as a teacher.

In fact, she was the first black woman with whom he'd ever had a conversation.

She left such an impression on him that he still vivid. whom he'd ever had a conversation.

She left such an impression on him

that he still vividly remembers what she looked like.

She was immaculately dressed,

and she wore kind of large floral print dresses,

everything about her, said class and dignity and

she had a particular perfume that she wore

that just seemed to fit. That spring she began to teach the class about poetry.

And I started to tank. I hated it. His grades were falling. So Mrs Holman told him he had to

stay after school to get extra help. And I didn't like Mrs Holman. I hated her

for keeping me from being able to play sports and so I was angry at her.

Well one day I said I was just I was just fed up and I said Mrs. Holman I don't relate to any of this this stuff.

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