Mr. Rick Gaebe currently teaches 6th grade P.E., 8th-grade literature, 7th-grade literature, and 8th-grade language arts, and he previously taught 8th-grade civics at Okawville.  He has been teaching here for about 33 years.  I asked Mr. Gaebe what he enjoys and he said, “I really enjoy being around young kids every day.  I love to laugh with them.  It helps to keep me young.”  I asked him what he was going to miss and he said, “I am going to miss the friendships I have made with other teachers and the kids.  Teaching has kept me motivated to learn new things.  I never ever thought I would see the day when we taught kids in their own homes and from our own homes.  Technology has definitely changed a lot of things but in the end kids and teachers are still the same because we are all human.  I hope I have helped kids to learn academic skills but more importantly, I hope I have motivated them to do the best they can be kind to others and to be grateful for their opportunities.”  Mr. Gaebe is a great teacher and will definitely be missed here at Okawville.  Thank you for your dedication, Mr. Gaebe!