It is said that the vast majority of people cannot name ten U.S. Presidents, Olympic gold medalists, Nobel Prize winners or great composers. So, what roles, abilities and capacities actually matters in life—or, more specifically, who makes a difference? Who will be remembered and whose lives will fade into oblivion? Who will conquer anonymity through works of good will rather than infamy?

 Perhaps when we dig back into the furthest reaches of our minds, we remember our first day of school, a mentor who made life reel with possibility, a coach who diminished the presence “can't”. If you have ever felt the exhilaration of epiphany as a critical thought drove ignorance from a formerly closed mind, you know the answer to the question of who, and that answer is Teachers.

 Through lessons in history and culture, Southern-ness and civil rights and military preparedness, three teachers prove that while they open minds, encourage critical thought and inspire striving toward a gamut of dreams, they are really teaching about life and how to live it.

Jack Swindle

Master Sgt. Jack Swindle taught Air Force Junior Reserve Officers' Training Corps (ROTC) at St. Charles High School, St. Charles, Missouri, for ten years beginning in the fall of 1969; he served in the U.S. Air Force from April 15, 1942, to July 1, 1968 in WWII, the Korean War and the Vietnam War;  he worked as aircraft technician, flight engineer, mobile training instructor, quality control inspector, senior controller, and completed his service as flight chief in Vietnam with responsibility for 12 F4 Phantom fighter air-crafts and 52 support personnel.

 Though this individual carried the country's burden time and time again and carried out important missions in some of the nation's most infamous wars, he is first remembered as a teacher and cherished as such.

 “It is hard to tell you what Sergeant Swindle meant to me 40 years ago,” Rick Johnston, a former student, divulged. “I knew nothing about him as far as his experience in a combat crew in World War II, Korea or Vietnam until a year ago because Sarge is humble; I knew nothing of his family in those days or the fact that he was looking out for me personally.”

 “Most students kind of gloss over their instructors and concentrate on getting their classroom work done—but at some point just before I graduated, I realized how much he cared and how much he did for all of us.”

 While Sarge acted the role of teacher, he filled many more shoes, Johnston said.

 “I had him for three years and the third year I finally figured out he really cared about us as individuals, as students and extended part of his family,” he explained. “We belonged to him and he would do anything for us that was moral and legal.”

 “He cared whether we passed or failed succeeded or didn’t make it. He was the perfect example of tough love.”

 Another student testified to Sarge's presence as mentor first and instuctor second.

 “I don't remember much about the aeronautics I learned in his classroom but I can tell you a great deal about the values he instilled in me and many others,” Maureen Watson, a student of Swinde's from 1975-79, began. “One of my favorite 'life moments' was the day I received a traffic ticket on my way to school for drill team practice (at 6:00 am five days a week).”

 “My car had an issue and required that I keep one foot on the brake and one foot on the gas at stop signs and lights or it would die. I came to a flashing red light and apparently did not make a complete stop. When I got to school, I was upset—more upset about telling my parents than the fact I had received a ticket. Sarge took me aside and asked what was wrong. I explained what had happened and told him that I wanted to take care of if without telling my parents. In his own special way, Sarge helped me to change my mind. As a result of his guidance, I took care of the ticket after school that day and then went home and told my parents what had happened. The funny part was that they were not mad but proud that I not only had I told them but that I had already paid the fine…and that weekend my father and I gave the car a tune up.”

 Watson and other students under Master Sgt. Jack Swindle offer proof that the most effective lessons are the ones we don't realize we're learning.

 “Sarge instilled many values in his students,” she said. “When I look at the Company's vision and mission statements or core competencies, I see words like collaboration, innovation, integrity and diversity—looking back, Sarge taught us all of these things, he just didn’t name them.”

 “He is a man that leads by example, walks the walk and opened his heart up to all of us. I am so blessed to have called him 'teacher' and continue to be blessed with his love and friendship.”

 While Swindle taught morals and uprightness to pupils, he did so at a time when patriotism and honor were hard lessons to swallow, as one student pointed out.

 “Sgt. Swindle was an amazing teacher, I think that everyone has a favorite teacher at some time in life, according to Janel Sauer-Uelk. “This man was more than my teacher to me and many students;   he taught us to be proud of our country and to stand up for what we believe.”

 “We were probably considered the geeks in school…the people making fun of us did not understand what we got out of ROTC. We waived flags back then during the Vietnam War, and that was very uncool. Our teacher taught us to be good to each other, show our parents and all adults respect. He also taught us how to be good citizens and to make the right choices.”

 It follows that this man taught students how to find their honor, even when they fell onto the wrong path.

 Dennis Lane, a former student, recalled that “he would take us aside and talk to us, tell us to admit to your mistake, pay the price for it, then let it be the past and let it stay in the past and don't do it again.”

 As young men and women watchedSwindle's example, they continue to apply principals they learned many years ago.

 “It was Sarge's personal interest in helping me develop the necessary command voice and military bearing to effectively lead cadets in close order drill, however, for me the most important lesson learned from Sarge came from his consistent teaching in the importance of 'esprit de corps', according to Sam Snyder. “I believe that lesson has impacted my character so strongly that the hallmark of my work life is described by many of my superiors as outstanding team player, always in pursuit of excellence and focused on serving customers.”

 “I truly believe that my three years as an AFJROTC student under the instruction and care of Sarge served a vital role in how I pursue life and work today. ”

 Even as Swindle showed his classes how to make life decisions, Tim Cronin, class of 1975, recalls lessons on how to treat others—lessons that he said have helped him succeed in his own family life.

 “For all of all his highly regarded professional accomplishments, I best remember Sgt. Swindle as a devoted husband and father,” he said. “Many times in the classroom he referred to his wife as his 'bride', a term of endearment probably lost on his teenage students at the time, but which speaks volumes to us now that we are middle-aged.”

 “Likewise, he was completely dedicated to his children. For example, I recall his dedicated focus on helping his son establish a business, even recruiting his students as both customers and employees. These are just two examples of numerous family related memories created for me as I was invited into Sgt. Swindle's personal life. What I witnessed was a man who lived the values that were the bedrock of his teaching: loyalty, devotion, and commitment. I could not have asked for a better education."

Jay Higginbotham 

A man with unending love for history and culture, Jay Higginbotham continues his work at the Mobile Municipal Archives even now, in his 75th year. He has written 22 books, the last of which was published eight years ago; he began teaching in 1962 quite by accident as he tells it, though the talent seemed to rest within his veins.

 He said that his mother taught school for 40 years, his brother teaches music and his sister is chair of music for the Oklahoma Baptist University.

 When offered his first teaching position, he was attending law school and had no intention of becoming a teacher. After a few moments of pondering, he responded, “that's what I'd rather do—get out three and a half months in the summer; I could travel and do whatever I wanted.”

 He chuckled as he recalled his answer.

 He began teaching fourth grade the next day and remembered feeling lost and confused about how to proceed. After a few days, he gathered his thoughts and decided to call roll, he explained with a smile: he said he gave the children nicknames like “Harold Crockodile” and “Rootin' Tootin' Gloria Ruten” and that he had them stand up and salute when he called their names.

 Even then, he stood out with his young enthusiasm, creativity and flare for the extraordinary.

 He found real-world reasons to be drawn to the subject of history and to the many uses of writing—something he hopes he passed on to his pupils, he said.

 “I felt like it was the only way I could express my opinion,” he spoke with widening eyes. “My family was one third Catholic, one third Baptist and one third aethiest—we had some real shoot outs when I was growing up.”

 “The only way that I could get a word in was to write and all my books have a historical presence.”

 In keeping with this sort of march to his own drum, Higginbotham says in a collection of his quotes about education, that “education is not something you obtain, it's a way of living, a way of viewing and reacting to the world around you.”

 As a way of living, he explained that the most important aspect of mindset for students is to “have a good reason to educate themselves”.

 He said that this motivation is imperative because, “in a sense, it's all self education, because teachers cannot pour it down their throats.”

 As such, he recommends three must-reads to stimulate sixteen year olds out of the stupor of spoon-fed informational sessions:  Dale Carnegie 's “How to Stop Worrying and Start Living”, “The Holy Bible” and Albert Camus' “The Stranger”.

 While Carnegie's work might help students for obvious reasons, he spoke in detail about the other two.

 “Read it (the Bible) in order to get along in this world,” he said with a pensive expression. “So many students are religious and it educates their lives.”

 “The Stranger” also holds a specific lesson, according to Higginbotham.

 “It hits at the bottom of the human condition and what you can do about it,” he explained.

 Beyond those three, he said that “young people should focus on politics because we need to make the right decisions—otherwise, we're all in trouble.”

 While his blood ties him to the trade and creative methods engross students, Higginbotham's ideals about the pursuit of the mind seem to seal  his fate.

 In “What Is Education” by the Friends of Freedom, he says that “Education is not merely the accumulation of information; it is not even the acquisition of knowledge. It is gaining the perception and skills enabling one to think critically and creatively about life's mysteries and challenges. It is learning to live in harmony with nature, but ever striving to improve it. It is overcoming greed, ignorance and superstition and sharing ideas and feelings as well as things material. It is becoming more conscious of evil and good, of human frailty, as well as of art and love, while striving to realize the heart's deepest yearnings.”

 As if his must-read selections and mottos don't say enough about education and it's reach beyond chalk boards and desks, Higginbotham's own life's goal should remind others to learn and to live.

 “When Carl Sagan was talking about 'The Nuclear Winter', he said, 'don't think the human race has much of a chance—if the H Bomb is dropped, I want to say I did the best I could',” Higginbotham recalled. “I decided I'd do the same thing.”

Frye Gaillard

 Frye Gaillard earned a B.A. in history from Vanderbilt University and is in his seventh year as writer in residence at the University of South Alabama. Earlier in his career, he worked one-year residencies at Queens University and at historically black Johnson C. Smith University, both  in Charlotte, N.C.

 Gaillard focuses his studies and teaching on the civil-right era; he edited “Race Relations Reporter” and “The Charlotte Observer” and has written articles for 'The Washington Post”, “Parade Magazine”, “Us” magazine, the “Journal of American History”, the “Oxford American”, “Alabama Heritage” and “Outside” magazine. He has written many books including: As Long as the Waters Flow: Native Americans in the South and East (1998); The Catawba River (1983); Cradle of Freedom: Alabama and the Movement That Changed America (2006); The Dream Long Deferred: A Community’s Quest for Desegregation (2006); and The Greensboro Four: Civil Rights Pioneers (2001).

 “One of the great things about being a journalist, or non-fiction writer, is that you make a whole career out of talking to interesting people,” he said with humility. “Whether it's Jimmy Carter, or Billy Graham, or Jesse Jackson, or Bear Bryant, or Johnny Cash, or Pat Conroy, or Richard Petty, or Maya Angelou, or Emmylou Harris, or people that most of us have never heard of, these are people who have done interesting things, lived interesting lives, and inevitably have interesting things to say.”

 “It's been my great good fortune to write some of it down.”

 These life experiences have led him to share knowledge and delve into ideas with the students at U.S.A.

 “What we try to do in the Writing the South class is examine the interplay of southern history and southern literature, how each has been shaped by the other to create a sense of southern identity,” he explained. “In a lot of ways it's kind of an amorphous idea, and you can take it in a lot of directions.”

 “I never know when the class begins exactly where it will go. Some of that depends on the students, and I've had some great ones.”

  As with many other teachers, Gaillard said he hopes students can see value beyond the classroom.

 “A college education is, most obviously, almost an expectation today for students entering the job market,” he admitted. “But it's also a time for reflection and self-discovery and for understanding why the world is the way it is.”

 “One of the things I love about South Alabama is the number of students I encounter who are hungry for an education—who want to learn and prepare to make a life, as well as a living.”

 He said he believes the class can help give students that opportunity.

 “I hope the class gets students to thinking about their place—the forces that have shaped it, what makes it tick,” he began. “I hope they'll wind up appreciating the South more deeply, even as they examine its flaws and contradictions.”  “Where you live is part of who you are, or at least it can be, and most of my students seem to find it fun and worthwhile to think about these things.”

  Carol Sherrod, a member of Gaillard's class in 2010, shared her perspective on her teacher and mentor.

 “Frye used a mixture of films and books to illustrate the South's impact on media—every assingment was interesting, engaging and meaningful,” she said. “He did a great job laying the foundation with films like “Birth of a Nation” and works by earlier writers like Kate Chopin.”

 “We went all the way into the modern south, examining everything from immigartion issues to current Southern poets. Every class was fun, and every student was participating.”

 She divulged that the class armed her with tools to support an open mind and inquisitive nature.

 “Without a doubt, my favorite book was Lillian Smith's “Killers of the Dream”, she said. “For me, this book was groundbreaking—written by a southern white woman in the 1940s, she confronts head on what white society in the South had vested in the culture of racial prejudice and violence.”

 “At the same time, she wrote of her love for the South. I am astounded that it's not required reading for all beginning students of American History. I am so grateful that Frye introduced this book to us. It felt like finally someone had put into words all the dark, unspoken fears and truths about Jim Crow white society.”

 By the end of the class, Gaillard had pulled from depths she didn't realize she had, Sherrod explained.

 “The assignment for our final exam was to respond to one question: 'What is the South?' she recalled. “When I first read that, I didn't know how to take it…how in the world do you explain that?”

 “The paper I ultimately wrote is one of the ones I am most proud of over my entire academic career. The broadness of that question allowed me to break out of formal, traditional methods and write from the heart, as a Southerner and a lover of history.”