At a recent all-school meeting, veteran teacher Bob Leister received a special plaque from the Sharon Academy, recognizing his years of service to students throughout central Vermont. Leister, who is officially "retired," continues to offer math classes at TSA, after a lifetime of working in schools, including Rochester and Bethel.

"I'm absolutely delighted," he reported. "When you've invested your life in different places, it rarely gets put together."

When asked why he chose to spend his retirement in a classroom, Leister replied, "I think retirement is when you're supposed to do what you love to do. This is what I love to do!"

Sarah Colton, a senior from Pittsfield, says that Leister "uses a lot of personal experiences to make the class more exciting. He has a great sense of humor, too."

Sean Halnon, a sophomore from Sharon, adds, "He's a cool guy. He's got a lot of stories."

Leister's career began in 1954 with teaching in the Air Force. He began his public school career a year later in Vermont's Northeast Kingdom.