Charlotte Leader, who passed away recently, was a wonderful person who exemplified faith, hope and love in all she did.
I knew her through the Durango Adult Education Center, which she both helped found and then served as a teacher without financial benefit, though she was surely recompensed in the ways that mattered to her.
For years, she and her husband, Jim (he of unlit pipe) came to the center and worked with our adults with developmental delays both at the Mason Center and the Commons.
These students were devoted to their studies and to Miss Charlotte, and they adored her. Make no mistake, she could bring them to rapt attention if they seemed to be drifting, and she helped them learn to read and their reading material ranged far and wide.
Charlotte respected her students’ interests and abilities and gave weight to one of our center’s core beliefs: All people have inherent worth. Charlotte was always kind, always compassionate, always prepared, always questioning her students and always believing that they could learn just a little bit more.
And because she believed, they did learn just a little bit more – for 22 years. We shall not see her like again this side of heaven.
Stephanie Moran
Durango
