Do I remember Mr. Schmitt?!? Readers share their memories

"I'm on the Buffalo Grove Fire Department and still live in the area. As a fireman and paramedic I'm in the school every now and then. My partners at work make fun of me because they notice that when I get near Mr. Schmitt, I am standing at attention and get very polite. Guess he made us that way."

- Gerry Geniesse, class of 1974

"After I recently saw him at our class reunion, I asked Mr. Schmitt if he remembered all the time I spent in his office for being such a jerk and he said, 'you know what, Kyle, I only remember the good stuff because there was so much good to remember with all of the great kids I had.'

"I thought that was so cool. As the disciplinarian of the school, he dealt with all of the bad and still chose to forget it and just remember the good. For me at least, that was pretty profound."

- Kyle Kaechele, class of 1990

"He would always say, 'Close is only good in horseshoes and hand grenades!' Every time I hear someone repeat this phrase, I can't help but think of him." - Amanda M. Karm, class of 1998

"Not only was Mr. Schmitt my junior high math teacher, but he has also taught both my daughters in the past two years. He has been an excellent teacher and a wonderful resource for parenting. Just the other day, I begged him to stay just two more years, 'til my girls graduate! "

- Janet Garbarini Meyer, class of 1974

"One of the things I'll always remember about Mr. Schmidt was he would never let you leave at the end of the day without taking a book home. Woe to the person who tried to sneak by him after the bell rang who did not have a book or their homework. I can still hear the words to this day: 'Hayden! Go get a book!'"

- Jim Hayden, class of 1974

" To be honest, I remember being pretty much terrified of Mr. Schmitt, when I was younger. It wasn't that he was big - I mean he was never too much taller than me, a fact I don't think I realized until after I had graduated. It was the voice. That you could hear him in our classroom was no small feat since his office was on the opposite end of the hall and around the corner from where we were. "

- Erin Heinz, class of 1991

"I could tell he loved the school as he was always moving quickly throughout the corridors or play areas and amazingly seemed to know everyone's names and ensure there was not any 'stepping out of line.' Flash forward to today and here we are, the class of 1974 on the brink of a 35 year reunion and still talking about the man, calling him Mr. Schmitt like we are still 11 or 14 years old."

- Donald Santowski, class of 1974

"How the heck was he always able to draw a perfect circle on the blackboard using nothing but his hand and a piece of chalk?"

- Tom Campobasso, class of 1996