When the opportunity came up to write a testimonial for Mr. Larry Grohn, I was honored and I jumped at the opportunity.
First I would like to point out the fact that being a teacher at Adams City High School in the rough neighborhood of Commerce City, Colorado is no easy task for anyone. This was a task that Larry Grohn tackled head-on daily for many years. He was patient, kind and tactful in his way of teaching, however he was a strong and stern gentleman when the time called for it.
As a teenage student, I was no easy task either. When I was a youth I was headstrong and cocky and I liked to challenge authority. I wasn’t always the nicest person in his classroom. With that being said Larry Grohn always showed a great deal of discipline and patience both in his classroom and in his own actions as a professional educator. We had our disagreements but he never gave up on me. He worked with me to get me past the obstacles in my way.
He made sure that I was educated thoroughly. He opened my eyes, and he saw more in me then I had seen in myself at that time. He served as a role model for us students growing up in a rough neighborhood and he showed us love and support that some of us didn’t receive from the rest of the school and community.
He enlightened us with the ethics, morals, and values that would help us achieve our goals in this world. He helped prepare us for life.
On his last day of teaching he took down a flag that flew on the wall of his classroom for years and he handed it to me. He said that if I put my mind to it and worked hard for it I could be anything I wanted to be in this life. And he was right!
To this day that flag hangs in my home gym, and I’m proud to say that I have since started a career as a professional athlete. I’m a family man and I’m living my dream. I keep that flag flying in honor of the lessons I learned from one of the very best mentors I could have asked for.
With as much grief that I brought this man in the last years of his teaching career, he still saw the world in me. I have no doubt about it that this is the same reason he has decided to run for the Hamilton County School board in the great state of Tennessee. He is a caring and dedicated individual with the utmost professionalism.
We were blessed to have him as a teacher and the Hamilton County School Board will be blessed to have him as well. He did his very best every day to make a positive impact on the children of our high school and I know he would do his very best to make a positive impact for the next generations coming up from Hamilton County.
I would recommend that you highly consider him for this position. I know without his guidance I would not be the man I am today.
