A pre-meeting reception on Sept. 8 heralded the Sept. 9 retirement of the Monroe County School Board’s longest-tenured member, as staff, friends and board members past and present gathered at Marathon High School to celebrate John Dick.
The outgoing chair has been a mainstay on the board for 20 years, following his service in the Vietnam war and time spent as a counselor at Marathon High School. He’s known for his work to make Keys teachers among the highest paid in the state, along with careful oversight of district spending and a push to build better schools and sports facilities.
Service to the schools runs throughout his family – his daughter Christine is now the principal at Marathon High School, while his wife Lourdes is a reading coach at the school.
“When I first came into the school district years ago, Marathon High School students were going out to become fishermen,” Dick said as he thanked guests. “Now, we’re sending students all around the world.”
“It’s just incredible what I’ve seen and what the boards, superintendents and the staff have done. Students that come to the schools in Monroe County, the world is open to them more than I ever could have imagined.”
PHOTO CAPTIONS:
3878: Service to Monroe County schools and the community is a family tradition for John Dick, his wife Lourdes, daughter Christine Paul and son-in-law Derek Paul.
3872: A custom cake congratulates John Dick on 20 years of service at a Sept. 8 retirement reception at Marathon High School.
3877: Carl ‘Chef Flavor’ Stanton congratulates Dick on his retirement. Stanton and his culinary students prepared the evening’s spread.
3880: Past, present and future: Monroe County School District board members and staff gather for a photo. From left: Luis Gonzalez, Sue Woltanski, Darren Horan, Mindy Conn, John Dick, Andy Griffiths, Yvette Mira-Talbott, Ed Tierney and Ed Davidson.
