– Says retired Abram’s Creek teacher 

NOW a retired teacher with about 30 years under her belt, Genevieve Howard, the first youngster to become a trained teacher from Abram’s Creek, in the Pomeroon River, enjoyed each passing year.

She did lots of voluntary work in the health field but can recall telling her mom that whichever field she gets through with first; that’s the one she’s going to pursue.

Howard, 56, was born and raised at Abram’s Creek and simply loves it there! “I am living here all my life. I was born here, I married here, I went to school here, I went to training college, came back and was teaching here, and now I’m retired,” she told the Pepperpot Magazine during an interview at her home.

Continuing to teach even after retirement, Howard holds lessons for students in Grades 2, 4 and 6 every day. During her years, she taught at Abram’s Creek, Anna Regina, F.E. Pollard, and Lilydale Primary Schools.

Howard qualified herself at the Cyril Potter College of Education (CPCE) for two years before returning to teach at Abram’s Creek Primary, the very school she attended as a child.

She climbed the steps, so to speak, in that she became a senior assistant mistress after five years, then senior mistress, and headteacher.

Howard is married to Maxwell Howard and has no children. “But I love children!” she was quick to point out.
“I was kind of disappointed that I didn’t have children. When I got married, I told my husband I might be getting pregnant, but on to today, that never happened. Because I am a Christian, I told my husband I might be like Sarah one day [a Bible character who got pregnant during her elderly years],” she joked.

Her husband, 24 years her senior, has two children from a previous marriage, one of whom served in the US Army as a pilot.

Asked to explain her love for children, Howard said: “I love children and I feel I can be a role model to them, I can train them, I could teach them good morals. You don’t have to have a child to love children.”

She said a good teacher must first of all love children and must be dedicated, understanding, and respectful of themselves and of the smallest child coming up. “You must also teach children the truth; live the truth and teach them the truth,” she advised.
Life for her in Abram’s Creek is very enjoyable for her at the moment. “We have our own little farm, we live self-sufficient. We have our own boat, engine, little home. It can be a bit slow compared to Georgetown, but we love Pomeroon.”