Glen Crest teacher inspires students to give back

Craig Hofmann plays a video to his social studies class.

They've been building up to this lesson about resiliency and turning a tragedy into something positive. It's a "60 Minutes" interview of kids whose mom or dad died in the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, and it's always hard to watch, Hofmann said.

"They thought they would never be happy again after 9/11," Hofmann said. "But they discovered through this process of giving back to others, and learning to forgive, they can find happiness again."

That's his "ultimate goal," to help his students at Glen Crest Middle School in Glen Ellyn discover the "joy that most people get from knowing they helped somebody else."

It's a lesson "Mr. Hof" knew he couldn't really fit into the curriculum or contain in a classroom. And he knew middle schoolers can be wrapped up in their own world.

"When I was their age, I had no motivation to do this," he said. "When you're 11 to 14, your sense of maturity, generally speaking, isn't that advanced."

But he also knew kids would enjoy volunteering if their friends got involved. So the teacher known for his collection of plaid shirts started the Builders Club - a version of a high school Key Club, also with ties to Kiwanis - and allowed any student to come and go throughout the school year.

Club members maintain a busy schedule, completing 33 projects or events last year.

It's not a fundraising club. Hofmann doesn't want kids to ask their parents to donate to a cause.

"The kids have to give of their own time," he said. "It really is coming from them."

They don't flaunt their work, and Hofmann doesn't offer incentives.

"I don't want them to feel like they're doing this for some sort of extrinsic reward," Hofmann said.

Often, it's an outlet for students to use their talents. When they visit nursing homes, their charge is more simple: be a kid. They decorate walkers, play games, reminisce with seniors and learn to be patient and sensitive to their needs, Hofmann said.

"Doing what comes naturally is a good thing," he said.

This week, they served dinners to homeless families at a PADS shelter. And they've already organized a drive to collect Christmas stocking stuffers for troops, most of whom are in Afghanistan. About 300 pounds of treats - DVDs, puzzle books, gift cards - were donated.

Because of their maturity, Builders Club students are the only middle schoolers who packed the stockings at an Operation Support Our Troops-America warehouse, Hofmann says.

He deflects those kind of compliments he hears from nonprofit groups, crediting parents and other teachers for raising kids who care. But Principal Kim Price notes Hofmann's popularity, inspiring one sixth-grader to dress up like her favorite teacher during a school spirit day.

The girl even went to Kohl's to get that plaid shirt, wore wire-rimmed glass and added a touch of Hofmann gray to her hair.

And that explains why at least 90 students are signed up for the club, though more will be involved over the year.

"Craig Hofmann is just really super committed to it," Price said.

The teacher from Wheaton has spent 37 years at Glen Crest and thinks he may retire in another four. Sometimes he worries whether, years from now, students will remember the history he teaches, the dates and facts. But then he hears from students who join Key Club in high school and continue volunteering in college.

"There's nothing that makes me happier," he said.