"I was raised in a big family and we have very few material things. In 2nd grade my teacher taught me the value of reading, that if you read you can go anywhere in the world. That really made an impression on my life, and to this day I still enjoy reading."

"My third grade teacher wasn't just my teacher at school; she was my teacher at Sunday School and my neighbor. She was my favorite not only because she was a great woman, but she was in every aspect of my like at such a young age."

"My junior and senior math teacher had the biggest impact on my life. He was like a second dad; he cared about his student personally, not just about out math grades. He went out of his way to help us understand."

"There are two who I really loved. My elementary teacher was really sweet as I was learning to speak English in her ESL class. She didn't have children, so it felt as if she took us in as her own. My middle school teacher was great because I felt like I could talk to her about anything. Middle school's a tough time for kids, and she really listened to me when I didn't want to talk to anyone else."

"Mr. Anderson, my high school agriculture teacher, was extremely intelligent and a humble man. He taught us to always be prepared, and as kids we thought that was funny because we didn't understand what we needed to be prepared for. Now I see just how important that lesson was."

"My nursing instructor at Kilgore College was really amazing. She helped me realize nursing was the profession I wanted to go into. I knew she was the type of nurse I wanted to be someday. Now I'm an LVN, and I plan to follow in her footsteps."