Kentucky teacher connects with students — and their families — after devastating tornadoes
School teachers do some of the most important work across our country — both inside and outside the classroom. One Kentucky school teacher proved just that following a series of devastating tornadoes in the Midwest.
Kammie King's preschool classroom in Dawson Springs is now an overflow storage space for donations. She's been a pre-K teacher in the tight knit town for nearly two decades.
"My initial thought was how many students and families are we going to lose? What are we going to find?" King said. "...it was devastating."
Since the tornadoes hit, King has reached out to every family of her students to account for all of her littles, as she calls them.
But just a call didn't quite cut it.
"They need to see my face," King said. "They need to know that I'm ok and they need to know that their connection to this school is out there walking around."
"They're different," she added. "Littles run up and hug you, but you literally feel all 10 fingers squeezing into your back, holding on to you. They don't want to let go."
With nowhere to go, the Clark family — whose daughter Zoe is one of King's students — is living at a shelter.
"We went from the five-bedroom house to one little room," Brandon Clark said. His wife Georgia, also a former student of King's, added, "And it's been difficult, very difficult."
Whether they're current students like Zoe or former ones like her mom, Miss Kammie doesn't let go.
"I want to let them know that I love them and I am doing the right thing," King said.
