DAPHNE, Ala. — Members of the Daphne Optimist Club and local residents have been meeting to plan a teacher recognition event to coincide with National Teacher Appreciation Week in March.

Daphne Optimist Club member Ben Spencer said the club wants to plan an event to recognize outstanding teachers at 19 local schools, but exact plans have not been finalized.

“We just met the other night to see if it was possible. We got such a huge enthusiastic group gathered,” he said.

Spencer said the club learned the area’s public schools would not be able to have a teacher recognition event for this school year because of budget cuts.

The club saw an opportunity to fulfill its mission of shining light on outstanding kids — who are taught by outstanding teachers.

“We found out that because of the funding shortages public schools were not able to have an event to honor their teachers of the year. We thought that was very important; if you taught all of your life and you got Teacher of the Year, that might be the most important honor that had ever been bestowed upon you. I think that is worthy of holding them up for the entire Eastern Shore to see,” Spencer said.

Public and private schools in Spanish Fort, Daphne and Fairhope will be included in the event.

All of the public schools have selected a Teacher of the Year, but the area’s private schools will also select one for the event, Spencer said. Preliminary plans for an event include a presentation with a framed letter of recognition and a dinner.

Spencer said the club feels teachers deserve to be recognized for all of their hard work.

“We just think that the community needs to focus more on the schools, the teachers and the students,” Spencer said. “The teachers are the ones at ground zero.

“Especially because of the economic situation that we are in, we voted in an extra penny tax to help schools but that has been absorbed and now they are going into proration and we have teachers that are having to bring (school supplies) in from home. We want the whole community to look at the schools.”

Spencer also hopes the club can convince the cities’ mayors to issue proclamations.

“We want to stir up the Eastern Shore about getting involved in the schools,” he said.

The club is planning another meeting later this month. Spencer hopes plans for the event will be concrete by then.

“We don’t have all the edges nailed down yet,” Spencer said.