Debra Brown and Julie Brown are not related, but one might think they should be sisters. As joint teaching assistants in the Walther Lutheran Academy preschool they share a lot, including an eclectic taste in music, a love of children and a desire to share the wonder of God’s world and the love of Christ with the little ones in their care. They’ve worked as a team for five years at Forest Park’s longtime center of Lutheran Education, and Julie has been part of the early childhood staff for ten years. Julie’s own education began at Grace Lutheran School in River Forest. She went to Oak Park River Forest High School and still lives in Oak Park with her mechanic husband Craig and their three dogs, a Golden Retriever “Molly”, German Shepherd “Shannon” and Black Labrador “Travis”. When Julie’s not caring for kids, she’s gardening or working as an assistant dog trainer in Cicero. How did they end up with three dogs? “Well,” said Julie, “the first one ate couches until we got the second dog – that cured her. Then we got Travis…” Debra graduated from Farragut High School in Chicago where she lives with her husband Rodney, who is in purchasing. Debra’s family is rounded out by adult stepson Pete, plus daughter Maya and son Miles. When Debra’s not teaching children, she’s teaching adults as a leader in adult education at Living Word Christian Center in Forest Park, where she works with the GED, computer center, Spanish language and career development programs. Both women like to read. Julie’s recent favorite was J.K. Rowling’s fantasy, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, while Debra opted for the motivational Releasing Your Potential by Dr. Myles Munroe of Bahamas Faith Ministries International. Neither are big movie goers but Julie did enjoy “Freedom Writers,” the story of a teacher who used journaling as a way to unlock the potential of troubled youth. Debra and Julie have shared many memorable classroom moments. Debra told about the time they had an old typewriter for the children to play with. “The kids were fascinated by what it did…by the ribbon…the paper,” she recalled. “They thought a bottle opener was pretty neat too.” Julie laughed as she remembered the time one little boy pulled out a record. “Mrs. Julie,” he said, “that’s a very big cd.” Julie selected Psalm 118:24 as her favorite Scripture, “This is the day the LORD has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it.” She rejoices in the hugs and beautiful smiles of the children. She admits that there are times when it’s nice to get a break when the kids leave for the day, but soon she finds that she can’t wait for them to come back the next morning. Debra meets life’s challenges with Philippians 4:13, “I can do everything through Him who gives me strength.” She seems to have always been helping out with children. “My mom used to babysit,” she explained, “so there were always kids around.” Her goal at the Academy is pretty straightforward. “I want to be the best I can be,” declares Debra, “and love these kids.” Julie stands right beside her sister in service, saying, “We want to show these children that Jesus loves them no matter what.” |
