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Esther Peabody Venters ANDREWS - A Thumbnail Sketch of Her Life by Sarah Caroline Andrews Neely, Daughter

Born to Lucy Peabody and Ross Carroll Venters on Jme 10 , 1908 , Esther grew up in a big two-story house at 922 N Church, directly across from the old Marietta Grade School in Decatur, IL.

Quite an accomplished pianist, she was 23rd of the 27 pupils to perform on Lilly Ryder's June 1924 recital at Decatur High School auditoriun. Esther inherited her artistic interest and talent from her mother, Lucy, and grandmother, Sarah Peabody.

In 1925, she received her Red Cross Senior Lifesaving certification and kept it current for several years. When a student at Decatur  High School, she was active in sports and the newspaper. Her high school graduation was held 10 June, 1926 at the Lincoln Square Theater.

During the summer of 1926, Esther was one of 94 artists throughout Illinois who was chosen to exhibit in the Illinois Poster Art Alliance contest at the Illinois State Fair. A newspaper article of the same time period states, An exhibition of unusual local interest opened Sunday in the Art Institute, where George Raab and his pupils from Millikin University and the Institute's own studios show their work. The pictures were hung last week and will remain in the building for three weeks. Then follows the names of the sixteen artists, including Esther.

Even though art was her love, when she enrolled in Millikin, her practical side took over and  she received her two-year associate degree in education. While at Millikin, she pledged Theta Gamma and was the chapter president for a year, according to the Decatur Herald article of 27 Feb, 1927.

Esther's first teaching assignment, I believe, was Washington Grade School in Decatur. The summer term of 1930 she spent at Madison WI studying Art & Art Curriculum.

Along about this time she started dating Forrest William Andrews, Jr. or "Pete" as he was commonly called. They hadn't really been aware of each other before this time, although Esther's brother, Neil, and Pete had played ball together for years and been in Boy Scouts together as boys and teenagers. Esther and Pete were married 4 June, 1932 at the Parsonage of Westminster Presbyterian Church.

Esther spent the rest of her life teaching in one form or another. She taught elementary school, middle school, taught adult handicraft classes through the Parks & Recreation Department, and managed the summer program at several Decatur IL parks including Monroe Park for several years.

Later, she was the first teacher in a pilot program in Macon County, teaching reading and math skills to felons preparing for release, enabling them to find jobs.  It  didn't take long for Esther to develop a special rapport with these "outcasts of society". They treated her like a Queen and threw a party for her when she and Pete moved to Oregon in 1965.

Esther applied for, and was granted, special permission for a teaching certificate in Oregon in 1965. With new teachers needing a four year degree, plus continuing education hours, it was a rare thing when Oregon looked at her lifetime of teaching , along with the many letters of recommendation from her Illinois contacts, and awarded her a limited certificate so she could do substitute teaching in the schools.

It didn't take long for the teachers in the Lebanon and Waterloo School Districts to recognize what a treasure she was. Then the calls started pouring in. It was a poor week, indeed, when she wasn't called to fill in at least three days somewhere in the district. Sometimes she'd get two or three calls in the same morning from different schools.

One of her many talents as a substitute lay in her ability within minutes of walking into a classroom, to pick out the trouble maker, then by appointing that person as her special assistant for the day, she usually had him or her eating out of her hand.

Potential trouble was averted and she kept control of the class. (Now whoever heard of a substitute teacher being able to do that?) She demanded respect and got respect from the students and undying gratitude from the teachers that she filled in for.

At the time of her death, 9 April, 1981, Esther had been hired full-time temporary for six months at the Scio Elementary School to fill in for the librarian, who was out with pregnancy complications. At Esther's funeral, the mortuary was packed with standing room only, as almost every teacher she'd subbed for over the sixteen years she'd been in Oregon was in attendance, plus friends and family.

 She is still sorely missed.

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