Ruth Bair, the drama teacher at R.L. Thomas, was so sweet. Irene (Palermo) emailed me that she had died and calling hours were held for her last night on Empire Boulevard. I learned that she continued teaching special needs children at St. Joseph’s Villa after her retirement. I too had special needs when she attempted to crack through my numbskull high school zombie state and on some level she succeeded.
She was an “open study hall” monitor when I met her and she decided I should be the lead in the upcoming production of “Teahouse of the August Moon”. I had never acted or even though of doing so. I was more of a clown although the real honors for that went to Jeff Munson.
I had a hard time taking the whole thing seriously and could not remember my lines. In a dress rehearsal before schoolmates I bounced from the first act to the third taking the entire cast with me and had to free associate to get back to the first act. I remember the drama assistant, Miss Brenda Dockery, taking me into her office to sit me down and look me straight in the eye and stress how important it was to the whole cast that I get serious and learn my lines. Somehow I got through but I know I was bad.
Ruth was fun loving and brave. She let us borrow her car during study hall. I remember taking it airborne on Pellet Road and slamming the bottom on the road on decent and then stopping at the Satellite on Ridge Road for a burger. But mostly I remember her making a real connection. Not many teachers could do this.
Leave a comment