Thursday, June 21, 2007

School honors former teacher

Belvoir Elementary dedicates playground to Lexo

Nancy Lexo reminds her student Zachary Simons to leave room for writing below his bushy squirrel. (Photo by Anne M. Brink)

Nancy Lexo loved to teach, but perhaps more importantly, she loved her students.

And dozens of her students, their parents and Lexo’s colleagues at Fort Belvoir Elementary School gathered Saturday to dedicate a playground in her memory.

“Her classroom was an exciting and inviting place to be,” said FBES principal Jane Wilson. “Her smile and the twinkle in her eye were a constant reminder to children that they were loved.”

Lexo, a kindergarten teacher at the school, died May 7 at the age of 53 following a long battle with cancer.

“Nancy was a courageous and inspiring person,” continued Wilson. “She never, never complained. She always wore a smile on her face. The Fort Belvoir family has lost an outstanding teacher, colleague and friend.”

Born in New York City and the daughter of an Army officer, Lexo lived in Germany, Taiwan and other locations throughout the United States as a child.  An educator for more than 20 years, Lexo taught preschool and kindergarten at Hybla Valley and Groverton before coming to Fort Belvoir Elementary in 2002.

Jennifer Kehoe, whose son Jason was in Lexo’s class, said the veteran educator was an innovative teacher.

“Nancy was quite a geography teacher and went to great lengths to ensure children learned,” she said. Lexo even cut up a large world map and placed it on the floor of her classroom so her students could more easily see the earth’s continents and countries.

“A piece of Nancy will live forever in the Kehoe family,” Kehoe said, “especially in my son, who was truly blessed to have had such an amazing kindergarten teacher.”

Shawan Torregano, a teaching colleague of Lexo’s, said her friend had a huge impact on her both personally and professionally.

“She taught me to put family first, career second,” Torregano said. “She taught me that my teenage daughter will love me again, probably after college.”

FBES student council vice president Spencer Moore recalled reading to Lexo’s students every Wednesday.

“No matter what happened, she had a smile on her face,” he said. “She gave us the best books to read, she had the best games. From what I saw, all the kids loved her. This playground dedication will remind everyone who special she was everyday.”

Pam Broka, Lexo’s teaching assistant from 2004-2007, said her memory would live on in her students.

“Nancy would grab the students attention and hold it in the palm of her hand,” Broka said. “She loved to teach and she loved her students.”

Lexo’s husband, Jim, and daughters Rebekah Zitron, Rosalie Schwimmer and Margot Schwimmer, attended the ceremony, which featured Jason Kehoe and Karlee Skaggs, students in Lexo’s kindergarten class in 2005, reading a poem she wrote entitled “Sick at School.”