PORTLAND, Ore. — A graduating class of Grant High School students surprised their kindergarten teacher all while dressed in their caps and gowns. Many of them hadn’t seen her in 13 years but turned out she remembered them like it was yesterday.
Ask anyone and they almost always can remember their kindergarten teacher.
And in this case, 20 high school seniors — all about to graduate surprised Sabin Elementary kindergarten teacher Emily Foster in the very classroom they first met her.
“All of a sudden, these high school graduates started walking in and kind of shocked me and blew my mind,” said Foster.
“It was a little overwhelming a little bit I think she was super excited to see all of us,” said Grant High School student Eli McConnachie.
Foster has been teaching for 42 years but she remembered the now high school graduates as she sat behind her desk pointing to them and reciting the memories she had of each one.
“She was the first teacher that most of us ever had…I met most of my friends I’m still friends with today in that class being able to say I’ve known them since kindergarten,” said McConnachie.
Foster called it "the surprise of her life."
“Just fun to see all of them just looking at them and thinking about when they were kids,” said Foster.
She’s impacted so many of them…doing a job she loves.
“It’s amazing I don’t really think about that I think about what I’m doing right now I get paid to do this and I can’t believe that I get paid to do this,” said Foster.
The seniors graduated from Grant High School over the weekend and have this message to leave behind:
“Listen to your teacher because they know what’s best they will get you where you need to go and sometimes it may not seem like that but they definitely have your best intentions at heart and they definitely care about you a lot,” said McConnachie.