A Teacher and A Friend

Teachers and other faculty members roam our schools every day. As students, we might not encounter each of them in the classroom, and yet they can still have a tremendous influence on us.

One such teacher at Westminster High School in the late 70’s was Marilou Grout, or ML as she was often called. Mrs. Grout was never my classroom teacher. She came to the school my junior or senior year, but she did manage to become a very respected friend. Mrs. Grout was the advisor for the Speech and Debate club. Since I was hoping to go to law school, I thought some practice with this club might be beneficial for me, so I signed up to join.

ML was a great coach! She took us on adventures to competitions. She coached us, she taught us, and she loved us. ML was also a great cheerleader. And we wanted to win…for her. I spent my senior year of high school as a very proud member of the Speech and Debate club.

Well, ML was also an actress and a director. She invited me to audition for a show that she was directing called Dark of the Moon. She convinced me that it would be fun and that it was a really good show. So, I agreed. And she cast me in the female lead!

It was great fun working with her and the other cast members that summer. I learned things about myself that I never imagined. ML was a great director. She was energetic, enthusiastic and extremely patient. The show went extremely well, and not long after the production closed, I was on my way to my freshman year of college.

ML and I kept in close contact during my college years. In fact, she submitted my name to be a judge at a Speech and Debate competition in Wisconsin. At that time, my younger sister was on the team, so we all set out for a trip to Milwaukee for the tournament. I was so proud that ML had enough confidence in me to judge. It was a great trip, and we became even better friends.

Now, ML was married to a particular Groutie, Phil Grout, a photographer. Phil was an amazing photographer, and so in my last year of college, I asked Phil a very special favor-to be the photographer at my wedding. I felt so close to the two of them, and it meant so much to me that he was there.

After the wedding, we left Maryland because of my husband’s service in the Navy. I lost contact with the Grouts. There was an occasional word from my parents or friends that they had seen them at the mall or at the Fair. ML called once after she left teaching, but there wasn’t any real contact until Facebook. I found ML and Groutie on Facebook! We’re back in touch and planning to meet up for lunch or dinner.

I had never had a teacher become a close friend. And when I did, I realized that teachers are human! And they’re really nice humans! Nice humans who dedicate their lives to the education of young people. I am truly grateful to my teachers for their time, their dedication…and yes, their friendship!