Local teachers get a box full of thanks

Wauconda Grade School teacher Kathy Diomede may have felt special Tuesday when she was surprised with more than $1,000 in school supplies, but in many ways she represents thousands of educators across the country.

"We know that teachers are asked to do a lot," said Michael Paxton, sales manager of the Office Max store in Lake Zurich. "We were looking for an unsung hero in the community."

To recognize that effort, Office Max and nonprofit group Adopt-A-Classroom surprised 1,000 teachers in the nation Tuesday with gifts of office chairs, printers, paper and more.

This is the first year for the program, which honored two Lake County teachers and 68 more across the state.

James Rosenberg, Adopt-A-Classroom's founder, said the effort sought to highlight what the organization called "teacher-funded classrooms."

Rosenberg said teachers spend an average of $1,200 of their own money every year outfitting their classrooms with the extras they or students need.

"Teachers are givers and they do spend quite a bit of their own money," said Beth Kiewicz, principal at Diamond Lake School in Mundelein, where second-grade teacher Barbara Buck also received the gifts. "There's always something else you want to do."

Office Max officials say they're still deciding if the program will continue next year but the company will keep its relationship with local schools, seeking to raise millions to help them.

"It's been a phenomenal success," Rosenberg said. "The stories that have been coming out have just been incredible."

Wauconda Grade School Principal Debra Monroe said it's wonderful to see the sacrifices teachers make being noticed.

"They put in a ton of extra time," Wauconda Grade School Principal Debra Monroe said. "I don't think the community necessarily realizes (how much)."

And as Diomede opened her gift box filled with supplies as lowly as a packet of construction paper and as sophisticated as a new digital camera, she said the recognition meant as much as the presents.

"This is like a teacher's dream come true," she said. "I really feel appreciated."