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This story first appeared in the Fall 2023 Edition of the Pal-Mac Pulse. To view an electronic copy of the magazine, click here.

 

SEPT.11, 2023 —After 20+ years of service and smiles, Senior Clerk Typist at the Pal-Mac Intermediate School Linda Christ is taking on her next journey: Retirement. 

Described as “the mother of Pal-Mac Intermediate,” Christ is well-known for her signature sunny personality.

At the time of our interview, she had just a week left until she officially retired.

We spoke to her while we sat in the school’s cafeteria, as she had a rare free moment to sit down and chat.

For the better part of 20 years, Christ kept herself quite busy between a couple of different roles, all under the same roof.  But soon, her seemingly non-stop schedule would come to a slow halt.

“It’s very bittersweet because I have loved my job from the moment I started here,” Christ said. She added the last two decades “went by so fast.”

All around her were subtle, and some not-so-subtle, reminders of what was to come when the last bell rang on the last day of school. 

Behind her desk was a chain of multicolored pieces of paper, with each piece representing the remaining days of class. 

Across from her was a sign labeled the “12 Days of Christ-Mas,” a play-on-words nod to the cheery Christmas song. The sign featured references to Christ and her daily tasks, including paperwork, learning names, and even managing fire drills.

 

When she isn’t sitting behind the desk, she is out in the halls and classrooms. Sometimes, she has her camera in hand as she captures special moments at several full-school morning meetings or different class activities.

But she’s meant so much more to the school than just filing papers and managing fire drills.

To Christ, one of her most important responsibilities was to simply be there for the people around her. We asked her if she felt the mother's title was fitting, and she agreed.

“Sometimes, we’re the first smile they see, and we’re the first greeting of a hello that they see,” Christ said. “That’s important to me to make them feel loved. It’s the same thing with the adults in the building.”

The feeling was mutual for Christ, as she said the students and her colleagues made coming to work much more special. Keeping with her motherly calling card, she likened the building, and its people, to being one big family.

“You leave your home but you come here, and it’s been a support system,” Christ said. “Some days things happen in your life, but the family here has been a support system.”

Christ’s passion for family is nothing new. She first came to Pal-Mac as a reading aid at the turn of the new millennium after spending several years at home. She spent the time looking after her young children. 

When it was time for the kids to go to grade school, Christ followed them to what was at the time called Macedon Elementary School.  The chance to see her children, and have summers off, made the job appealing.

“It just worked,” Christ said.

After six years in the aid role, she transitioned to her now-famous spot behind the main office desk. She credits her time as an administrative assistant at Cybron Corporation, a now-defunct company, for helping her adjust.

Through the years, she worked with four principals, each with their unique style.

We spoke to the current Director of Informational Technology Chip Dolce, who served as principal for eight years alongside Christ.

Dolce said Christ helped make his time at the school one of the most “special and rewarding” times of his career.

“Her warm and welcoming presence set the tone for countless individuals, day after day,” Dolce said. “Whether it was a student, a parent, a staff member, or a visitor, Linda's genuine care and infectious smile created a positive and nurturing atmosphere that resonated throughout our halls.”

Additionally, current principal Jennifer Check said it was hard to put into words exactly what Christ has meant to the school and the District. She added that Christ was “everywhere,” when it came to addressing different needs within the building.

The two only worked together for roughly a year and change, but Check mentioned 30-second dance parties and the “laughs and love” they shared every day.

“She’s a ray of light,” Check said. “She’s also so positive and very knowledgeable. Always willing to help.”

Through her time in the District, there was a lot of dancing, a lot of laughs, and a lot of love. But when asked if she had a specific memory that stuck out, Christ pointed to a funny story a few years back.

The story involved a bear scare and a bear suit. Yes, this happened.

As Christ tells it, she was still working as a reading aide when a long-term building sub believed they saw a bear in the woods behind the building. Panicked, the sub told the principal at the time, who then went out to check. The principal confirmed there was no bear.

Then came the next morning.

A secretary came into work and gave Christ a special gift: the bear costume. The next thing she knew, she was outside greeting people in a full bear suit.

“I think I had Teddy Grahams and handed them out,” Christ said.

The building sub took the joke in stride.

After trading some laughs at the bear story, the time came to ask Christ about what she’ll miss most about her role. Her previously expressive smile turned into a look of focus and deep thought.

Suddenly, she couldn’t find the words. And then she did.

“I will miss working in the office, I will miss the kids,” Christ said. “Their smiles and hugs are so precious to me.”

Reflecting further, she says one of the special parts of the job was watching students come through the school and eventually become teachers in the building.

Seeing that growth is just one of the many keepsakes she’s taking with her into retirement.

Speaking of retirement, while Christ listed off what she will miss, she also shared what she won’t miss: Her alarm clock.

That, and driving to school in the Winter.

Much like a snowy drive to work, Christ plans to take the early part of retirement slowly. She’s looking forward to spending more time with her husband, a retiree himself. She also hopes to take some trips out west to visit her kids.

But what she's looking forward to most: Being able to stay up to watch a prime-time Buffalo Bills game in full.

When we spoke to her, the Bills were still a few months away from kicking off.  Christ still had some work to do before the bell rang at the end of the school day, so we fit in one last question.

“Even though you’re retiring, do you still feel a part of the Pal-Mac family?”

CHRIST: “I hope so. I’d like to come back and visit. Maybe I’ll go on field trips or volunteer elsewhere.”

Sure, Linda Christ is taking on her new journey, but her place among the Pal-Mac family will never change.