Saying goodbye to an amazing teacher

I attended Sisters Middle School (SMS) last year and my U.S. History teacher was Michelle Hammer.

Hammer was an amazing teacher from the first day she taught me, along with hundreds and hundreds of other students she has taught. She brought joy into the classroom every day. She brought kids together each and every day she stepped foot in the classroom and was determined to make the school and local community a better place.

She had an amazing impact on my fellow students at the Sisters Middle School, always caring. Teaching us about what has happened in our nation and how our county was founded, she was truly a remarkable educator. Take it from my fellow classmate Jack Turpen, who said, “Michelle Hammer had a great impact on a lot of kids at middle school. She cared for everyone, that’s the person she was. She was never [anything] but great to every student. That’s what made her so special.”

My classmate Hudson Beckwith also said, “She was an amazing teacher, always helping us out on homework assignments and projects. The projects we did in class were hard at times, but were a lot better with a teacher like Michelle always helping us, and being there for us.”

Hammer’s impact was the reason everyone enjoyed being taught by her. She would always give students a chuckle when she would make funny jokes like, “Hey students, what did they do at the Boston Tea Party? I don’t know, I wasn’t invited!”

Students adored her so much. She always put a smile on all of our faces. I remember the first day of school, I walked into her classroom and I talked to her and she really showed that she cared about what I was saying. She always put her students’ needs above hers. That’s the unbreakable spirit that Michelle Hammer carried with herself each and every day as an educator and great person.

We (Sisters) as a community were so blessed to have a teacher like Michelle Hammer, who was always there for her students. She truly was a once-in-a-generation leader. Michelle Hammer means hope — that no matter what we go through, how big or how small, anything is possible. With COVID-19 this past year, it was really hard, but she stuck with it and helped students every day. She gave us inspiration and that’s what made her so special.