“Too much heart” for animals leads to teaching career
“Too much heart” for animals leads to teaching career
By ALLAN TINKER
Her love for animals almost sent Laura Eide down the path to a veterinary career. “But I have too much of a heart for animals to be a vet,” she said, fearing the many procedures that the animals must endure when hurt or sick.
Instead, her other love, children, won out and she followed what she had always wanted to do, teach. “Other kids changed their minds a million times in and after junior high, but I never did.”
The only child of Ben and Linda Eide, Laura was raised on the cattle and small grain farm near Bowdon. She attended Bowdon Elementary until eighth grade; then graduated from Fessenden High School.
After completing high school, she attended Valley City State University, receiving a degree in Elementary education with a minor in Early Childhood Education and an endorsement in Title I Reading and Math. “I always liked kids,” she added.
Part of her education in elementary was tough for her: she was the only girl in her class during second, fourth and sixth grade. “I cried and wanted to stay at home from school. I had no girls for classmates.”
She didn’t get her way, which probably worked out well in the long run, as now she is the teacher for the all-boy first and second grades of the Goodrich Elementary. “There are two in first grade and one boy in second grade,” she smiled.
Her favorite thing to do, when she can, is to drive home to visit her parents. She also has a boyfriend who works at Coal Creek where he does carpentry. He lives in a nearby town so she can see him often, also.
At her new home in McClusky, a rented house that she shares with her new puppy “Chloe,” Eide is getting to know the new rural communities around her. “I always wanted to teach in a small school. Valley City was big enough with 20 kids in a room. The small community atmosphere suits me. It’s okay to visit Bismarck or Fargo once in a while, but I like small towns and farms.
