Recently, our very own custodian, Terri Baird, has won a coveted Champion of Community award for the state of Maine, and was named one of the top three custodians in the state! This award has come with her very own appearance on WMTW News and several small features across our town. The award is given out yearly by the Educational Plant Maintenance Association. The purpose of this award is to highlight custodians who go above and beyond for their school communities, and who show passion about helping their students succeed.
Terri, an alumni of Kennebunk highschool, has been working here for 31 years, and she’s loved every second of it. Prior to working at the highschool, she worked at Consolidated Elementary School for 13 years. She decided to go into the custodial field after thinking of various career plans after highschool, and ultimately decided she wanted to stay close to the people she loved. Terri says some of her favorite aspects of the KHS community include the pep rallies, dances, and general support system between the students and teachers. She loves seeing students interact with not only their friends, but others who may feel secluded or left out. Everything she does is with a smile, as she firmly believes a smile goes a long way.
After first being nominated for the award, she felt overwhelmed with emotions, and even a little embarrassed. However, after attending the conference in Waterville, Maine, she was overwhelmed with joy to see such a large community celebrating local custodians. She says that “the whole experience was very [gratifying] and it is such a great honor to have been nominated, let alone to have won a Champion of Community award” for simply doing what she loves.
Ending the interview, Terri hopes to spread her message that “It’s so much easier to be kind. It takes so much energy and effort to be mean.” She likes to think of the students as not only her peers, but her friends. Here at Kennebunk High School, we should all follow in Terri’s lead of making the community a better place for all involved, whether that be some of the new teachers or simply some of our fellow students. On behalf of the Herd and all of us at KHS; Congratulations Terri!
