Teachers create an impact in their student’s lives.
A simple lecture can change one life forever, or probably that one-on-one talk with your student. One could only imagine the responsibility and power a teacher holds. Sometimes it’s duty; mostly, it’s passion.
This high school principal went above and beyond his duties to help his study body.
Mr. Henry Darby is the principal of North Charleston High School. He’s known to be a hands-on worker – from simple things such as greeting the students as they stepped off the bus to going to their homes to check up on them. No words could ever describe that dedication.
Around 90% of North Charleston High School’s student body lives below the poverty line.
With COVID 19, there were more families affected, with parents losing their jobs. It pains Mr. Darby to see some of his students (and former ones, too) sleeping under the bridge, in the car, or with just a mattress on the floor.
He also expressed his concerns on how the pandemic dampened the personal relationships inside the campus.
The school lives by three central values: rigor, relevance, and relationship. All these could be expressed by a simple handshake or a hug but are now prohibited and can pose a danger to someone’s health.
But this beloved principal always has his heart on his sleeve.
He often knocks on his students’ doors after school or during the weekend to check up on how they’re doing—seeing their situation pushed Mr. Darby to do something tremendous and selfless for his students.
That’s when he started working at Walmart during the night.
He works as an associate, stocking goods in every row of shelves from 10 PM to 7 AM. He is doing all the hard work to help his students. Everything he earned from his job, he uses it to provide for those who can barely get by.
Most people were surprised about this, even his manager.
They didn’t know about his day job until his selfless deed became viral. According to Ms. Cynthia Solomon, the store manager, they just saw something special about him even before they knew about what he was doing. With that, they were supportive of it and would love to be part of his journey for as long as he wanted.
But his students were not surprised by this at all.
They all knew that their principal could do such a thing – working almost every night to help others. As a few of his students attested to this, their most common remark is that he is always ready to help, even when you least expect it but when you needed it most.
Mr. Darby asked nothing in return except for one thing: pay it forward.
It’s a simple request that he asked every student he helped. It doesn’t have a figure to put a value on it, but what he values most is for his students to learn to help others as he did. He is also determined that spreading kindness is one of the best ways to get through this crisis together.
And with that, Principal Henry Darby is North Charleston High School’s modern hero.
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