By MIKE COURSON
Great Bend Post
Kerri Batman taught Family and Consumer Sciences (FCS) at Great Bend High School for more than 30 years. Even after her death at the age of 65, in June, Batman continues to give to the school. Following her death, a memorial was designated to the FCS department. Monday night, the USD 428 Board of Education approved an $11,315 donation from that memorial. Cara Negaard, who taught alongside Batman for five years, said it was a very Kerri thing to do.
"We appreciate those who gave because they clearly knew what it was going for," Negaard said. "I just think it speaks highly that they knew how passionate she was about Family and Consumer Sciences that they would be willing to give in her honor to us. I'm kind of blown away by that."
Batman taught at Pawnee Heights from 1981-85 before making the switch to Great Bend. She retired the first time in May 2017, but after the next FCS teacher lasted just a semester, Batman returned to the classroom to finish out the 2018 school year. The same thing happened in 2019 before Batman retired for good.
"I always say she was the ultimate FCS teacher," Negaard said. "Our name is Family and Consumer Sciences, so family is the heart of everything. She was very much into wanting kids to learn those practical life skills of where our food comes from, how we should cook it, how we should make healthy meals and sit around the table as families to grow those families to be successful."
While FCS classes include plenty of kitchen work, Negaard said Batman had a special fondness for sewing.
"It may seem silly, but learning how to sew a button on is actually a pretty cool skill to have," Negaard said. "I'm always floored at how many students will say they threw a shirt away because a button fell off. That's not very practical. Those little life skills of fixing a little tear can extend your wardrobe and you don't have to spend money on a new outfit."
Negaard and fellow FCS instructor Katy Hekele have not been given a timeline on when they need to use money from Batman's memorial. They do want to ensure however the money is used represent Kerri's lasting legacy.
"We have talked about, here in the near future, trying to replace some of our sewing machines," said Negaard. "Over time, they break down. I think spending money to update the machines would be a great way to honor Kerri.”
"In terms of helping the kids themselves, Katy is very interested in us purchasing some classroom sets of sewing kits. We have a pretty high population that is low income, so anything we can do to help not put a burden of cost on them is important."
Negaard said instructors have asked for fabric donations before for class projects, and the memorial now allows them to buy some of their own fabric. She and Hekele will also look into purchasing small kitchen appliances that help promote healthy living. All of it comes with the goal of remembering a beloved coworker.
"I still reference Kerri quite a bit in several of my classes. I will talk about what I learned from her and share her stories of her family and friends that are still relevant today." Negaard said. "I could see us putting something up in each of the FCS rooms saying who she was and how some of the things that are in the rooms are because she has continued to give to our community through these donations."