The McCollumn - 12/17

A salute to Dr. Hannah

I was blessed throughout my time in the Opelika school system to have a number of great teachers.
Thankfully, most of them are still teaching, bringing their infectious knowledge and wisdom to a new generation of students.
Many of these educators stand out in my mind, but, truthfully, only one of them got me started on the career path I find myself slouching toward today: Dr. Charlie Hannah.
Dr. Hannah, the august senior honors English teacher at OHS, is certainly an Opelika legend at this point.
The “Hannah Paper” has become a rite of passage for Opelika seniors. Students who had him decades ago cannot only tell you their word, but what sources they used and how they attempted to tie their argument together.
Don’t believe me? Ask any former student.
Each year, the incoming seniors wait nervously for their first “Hannah” class, the class that will prepare them for college.
He’s one of the most unassuming and egoless people you’ll meet.
In a room filled with chairs, Charlie Hannah will always sit on the floor, just to make sure everyone has a seat.
He’s a peacemaker, trying to find a pragmatic way to get people to come together and work through their differences without backstabbing and in-fighting. He’s like Henry Kissenger without the frog voice and the war atrocities.
I go to him for life and career advice constantly, and he’s never turned me away.
He might have occasionally said things like “Cliff, I’m grading things. Go away,” but I seldom listen, so he lets me keep talking.
He tells me the truth, especially when I need to hear it, and his voice is usually the voice of reason that keeps me from making stupid and impetuous decisions.
He’s the sort of teacher that inspires his students to want to become teachers.
I’m in English Education largely because I want to be Charlie Hannah.
He knows this, and it’s apparently a Hannah family inside joke that I’m going to kill him to make this dream happen.
Crazy though I may be, I don’t think I could ever turn against the man who’s been my mentor and friend for almost 10 years now, even if it meant taking his job.
Cliché tells us that behind every great man is a great woman. I can state without fear of contradiction that Barbara Hannah, or Mrs. Dr. Hannah (as I like to call her), is no cliché. She’s the one who makes the trains run on time and she also makes a magical Kahlua Chocolate Pie.
When I take stock of a year that hasn’t lived up to the expectations I had for it, I take solace and comfort in knowing that good people like the Hannahs are a part of my life.
As surely as there will always be an England, Charlie Hannah will be a person I continue to seek advice and counsel from, whether he likes it or not.
Dr. Hannah, thank you for your continued help and support.
If I end up being half the teacher and person you are, I’ll consider my life one that was well-spent.
Thank you for your tutelage in the classroom and in life.
I don’t know what I’d do without you, sir.