Reader Sings Praises of a Standout Enfield Teacher

ENFIELD, CT — It is Teacher Appreciation Week, and Enfield Patch asked readers to celebrate the incredible work educators do by telling us what teacher has influenced their child the most.

Chrissy Asselin sent us this note and photos:

"I wanted to mention a great teacher! Her name is Ashley Hurley and she now works at Enfield High School. When my son, CJ, was in kindergarten, he had a kidney disease and separation anxiety. He was bigger because of water weight and always felt scared when being out. She was amazing with him. She would hug him in the mornings and hold him close while his father and I snuck away. Sometimes he would cry and she would comfort him and continue to hold him. This continued on and off all year. When he moved on to the first grade he still had anxiety. We would continue to walk him to her kindergarten classroom, where she continued to do this until he was comfortable enough, and then she would walk him to his own class. He is now in 10th grade and she is in the same school as him again. She still says hello every morning to him. When he asked his two kindergarten friends to the dance, she was part of the asking. This made a huge impact on how he saw school and made it easier for him to go and for us to leave him, knowing he was safe with her. He now is on track to go to college in two years and become a teacher! She is amazing!!"

If you would like to share a story of an amazing teacher, email tim.jensen@patch.com.