Vicki Wetmore vividly remembers the first time she walked into the lobby at Jasper Junior/Senior High School. It was 1996 and she had just accepted the position as the school’s new secretary.
“I remember my first week being so overwhelming that I went right up to Mrs. Karpluk—who was the principal at the time—and I told her that I didn’t think I’d be able to continue working there,” Wetmore said with a laugh. “And I guess she talked me out of it.”
Wetmore quickly fell into the routine of things—learning all the students’ names, helping teachers and participating in almost every school event.
“There’s always so much activity going on in the school—sometimes it’s hard to keep up with everything, but I always get so caught up in the excitement of the staff planning things and the students coming and going,” Wetmore said.
However, after 20 years, Wetmore is getting ready to retire. Her last day will be Sept. 27.
“I’m both nervous and excited, but I think I’m getting more excited as it gets closer. It’s kind of like starting a whole new phase of your life. My job has always kind of been my identity so I guess I have to figure out who that new person is,” said Wetmore, adding that even after hours she’s often stopped on the street by students trying to give in permission slips or money for school trips.
“It’s definitely going to be strange not having that as a part of my life anymore.”
Since that first day in 1996, Wetmore has watched hundreds of Jasper’s kids become adults.
“It’s really enjoyable to watch them come in as little kids in Grade 7 and leave as adults in Grade 12. It’s actually kind of emotional when they graduate—you feel this kind of sadness knowing that they are going out into the world,” Wetmore said. “You make a connection with these kids.”
Sitting in the school’s staff room for one of the last times, Wetmore recalled a memory she won’t soon forget.
“Every year we do random act of kindness week, and there was one day where every couple of minutes a student would show up with a red rose,” Wetmore said. “By the end of the day I had two dozen red roses on my desk.”
Aside from the many bonds she’s made with students, Wetmore said she’s also met a ton of fantastic colleagues and dedicated parents.
“The staff here have always been so supportive of me—I think I’ll miss working with all these people the most. It’s always been a great place to work,” Wetmore said. “But I’ve also spent a lot of time working with parents and volunteers and I’m going to miss being involved with them.
“I’ll probably shed a few tears on my last day—it’s going to be emotional for me.”
As she starts looking ahead to the next chapter of her life, Wetmore said her and her husband will stay in Jasper, but she plans to use her newly acquired spare time travelling the world and visiting with her family.
“One of the things on my bucket list is to go to San Francisco—I really want to bike across the Golden Gate Bridge,” Wetmore said. “We’ll see what happens now that I have all this free time.”
Kayla Byrne
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