TREE-MENDOUS HONOR

First Presbyterian Preschool staff plants a hackberry tree in Lake Forest to commemorate beloved teacher Sue Peecher’s nearly three-decade tenure at the school.

Kids say the funniest things. Longtime First Presbyterian (Lake Forest) Pre-school teacher Sue Peecher has hilarious proof. “One day, in our playground, I asked a 3-year-old girl, ‘How are you, my friend?’” she recalls. “The student said, ‘Oh, Mrs. Peecher, I can’t be your friend; you’re my teacher. You should look for friends somewhere else.’” Peecher—an adored full-time teacher at the school from 1997-2024, and now a grateful (and still adored) part-timer there—laughs.

In April 2024, Mrs. Peecher, who likes to “use humor to connect and to get to know my students,” received a super serious tribute at Triangle Park, located a hop, skip, and a series of hopscotch grids from the school. The preschool staff had a hackberry tree planted in her honor. Trees grow; students develop, thanks to kind, caring instructors like Mrs. Peecher. The hackberry sports branches; Mrs. Peecher’s arms embrace blithesome students. Such a fitting homage. Students and their parents, past and present, attended the warm ceremony on a chilly day. So did Mrs. Peecher’s husband, retired Lake Forest Academy history teacher Bill Dolbee, their sons, Sam and Joey, and Sam’s partner Arianne who also attended the preschool.

Sam had flown in from Tennessee, surprising the honoree. “I couldn’t believe it,” oh-so-humble Sue says of the merited recognition. “My first day teaching was with 3-year-olds and I couldn’t believe I’d get paid to have so much fun in such a special place. Teaching at First Presbyterian changed my life for the better.” A native of the Detroit area who aced penmanship assignments in her youth, Sue enrolled at Michigan State University, hoping to become a veterinarian one day. “I ended up majoring in History,” she says.

First Presbyterian Preschool teachers adhere to a play-based learning approach, recognizing children learn best via engagement and exploration in pleasant settings. “Kids learn to cooperate and negotiate with one another while playing,” Mrs. Peecher says. “They’re also given opportunities to listen, to consider others’ ideas, to take turns, to gain confidence. It has always been rewarding to me, seeing students interact and become close during their time here. I hope they leave the preschool with a love for learning and a curiosity for the world around them.” Here’s what Mrs. Peecher knows: the children, their families, and her amazing fellow teachers continue to bring joy to her days at First Presbyterian Preschool.