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February 11, 2010

Corbin teachers publish story collection

Book signing at Corbin Public Library Friday

By Samantha Swindler / Managing Editor

Three long-time Corbin teachers and friends have collaborated on a new self-published book, “The View from the Top of My Glasses,” which shares the funny, heartwarming and sobering stories of education.

Authors Pam Bishop, Karen Collins and Sylvia K. Hagy have close to 65 years of combined teaching experience — many of those years spent at Corbin High School.

Their first book is a collection of short expressions, stories and poems about teaching compiled by the trio over the years.

“Each of us has always used writing as a means of catharsis anyway, and we had actually had a collection,” Bishop said.

In the more than 10 years the friends have worked together at Corbin High School, they would often share their stories over lunch. None of the three women remember who first suggested a book, but they spent the next several years working on it.

“Most of the stories are about local people and real students we’ve had in class or real teachers,” Collins said, adding with a laugh, “we’ve tried to change the names to protect the not-so-innocent.”

One inspirational story is that of Travis Freeman, a Corbin student who was stricken blind in the seventh grade after suffering from meningitis. Collins, who occasionally played center for the Redhounds in the 1990s, said he was the first blind high school football player. Today, Freeman is a seminary student in Louisville.

Other parts of the book share quips between teachers and students.

“Kenny, where’s your book?” a teacher asks in one chapter.

“In my locker.”

“Well, what is it doing in there?”

“Nothing I guess.”

“It took us forever,” Hagy said of the book. “We had no idea what we were doing, so we wrote to some publishers. We went to the bookstore and got some books on writing and publishing.”

With the help of a graphic designer friend and the encouragement of the CHS media department, the teachers self-published a 125-page paperback, broken into four chapters — The Humorous View, The Reality View, The Hopeful View and The Encouraging View.

Teachers are, Bishop said, the “primary audience” for the book.

The trio originally printed 100 books and has already ordered more. Copies retail for $16.90 and can be purchased this Friday at the Corbin Public Library when the women hold a book signing from 3:30-6 p.m., or from Brookhaven Christian Books in London.

“We just really appreciate the support we’ve felt from (superintendent) Mr. McNeel and our principal Joyce Phillips,” Hagy added. “They’ve been very pleased and happy for us and it’s a nice feeling to have their support.”

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