The last day of school for students and teachers is usually much the same. The warm, sunny weather is in full swing, and everyone is excited to take a break from their studies and enjoy summer. This past June at Gockley Elementary School, however, there were additional emotions in the air on the last day of school.

As the first-grade students left Gockley for their buses that day, they each hugged or gave a high five to Dr. Mary FeKula and presented her with either a heart or hand, with personal messages about their thoughts and feelings for her as their principal.

After 29 years at Gockley and more than 38 years in education, FeKula was retiring as principal. She was overcome with so much emotion as she stood at the front door to the building where so many memories and milestones happened in her career. Her heart was heavy as she couldn’t believe this day had finally come.

Long before FeKula was a teacher and principal in Whitehall-Coplay School District, she spent time growing up in Whitehall, attended Catholic school through eighth grade at St. John the Baptist in Stiles and then later graduated from Whitehall High School.

“The day I was hired to work in the Whitehall-Coplay School District, I remember driving around campus feeling like I was ‘coming home.’ It was such a moving and memorable moment for me,” FeKula said.

FeKula always knew it was her desire and goal to become a teacher. She had a neighbor who was a teacher she was fond of, and her parents always spoke highly of teachers and the importance of their role in developing children. She had two younger brothers and would often play “school” with them.

“When they would show they learned from me, I would get so excited,” FeKula said.

She went on to teach CCD (Confraternity of Christian Doctrine) classes at church and continued to feel most “in her element” when she was teaching others.

“It was always just a big part of my life and a natural choice for me when it came time to choose a career,” FeKula said.

At the time, her maiden name was Epser, and she became the first child in her entire family to attend college. She attended East Stroudsburg University, making the dean’s list each semester, and graduated summa cum laude with a bachelor’s degree in elementary education with minors in both math and reading. She wanted to student teach at Parkland School District and was able to land both of her assignments at Parkland School District. Because Parkland was impressed with her work as a student teacher, she was hired right when she graduated college in 1978 as a second-grade teacher at Ironton Elementary School.

“It was extra special for me to teach there because Ironton was the school where my mother attended as a little girl,” FeKula said. “I remember it like it was yesterday, feeling so nervous when the principal and superintendent came into my room around the end of September, and the superintendent said to the principal, ‘Do you think we will keep this one?’ And the principal responded, ‘Oh yes, she’s a keeper!’ That made me so proud inside,” FeKula said with a smile.

In the winter of her first year of teaching, she went back to school for her master’s in education and a specialized certificate for reading from Lehigh University. She also went on to earn her elementary administration certification, superintendent certification and a doctorate in educational leadership, all with top honors from Lehigh University.

In 1987, FeKula was hired by Whitehall-Coplay School District to serve as assistant principal at the elementary schools for kindergarten through fourth grade and the reading coordinator for kindergarten through eighth grade for Gockley, Steckel Elementary School and Whitehall-Coplay Middle School.

She became the first female administrator ever to be hired at WCSD. After only one year as assistant principal, FeKula was informed by the superintendent she was going to be promoted to principal for Gockley.

“That was big for me and almost unheard of, after only one year as assistant principal, to be able to receive that kind of promotion. I was honored to be chosen for this incredible opportunity,” FeKula said.

FeKula recalled what it was like back in 1987 to be the only female administrator in the district: “When I would go to the intermediate unit where we would have our trainings and meetings, I would walk into a room full of males, and everyone seemed to be looking at me wondering who I was. It was definitely a different world back then. I have seen during all the years of my career that women have come so very far,” FeKula said.

FeKula’s secretary, Deb Holets, put together a scrapbook showcasing many of the memorable moments and milestones of FeKula’s tenure as principal of Gockley. As FeKula paged through the book, she reflected fondly on some of the moments she will never forget, like the time when she challenged her students to read 24,000 books; if they met that challenge, she would read to the children from the top of the school building!

“Not only did the students meet my challenge, they exceeded it by reading 34,525 books. So I found myself reading to them from the rooftop of Gockley Elementary!” FeKula said.

She also helped organize a sweater drive for the area’s social service agencies. Gockley collected the most sweaters in the Lehigh Valley. Therefore, Mr. McFeeley of PBS’ “Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood” came to the school to meet the children for their reward.

FeKula and a group of teachers from her staff took part in a statewide behavior program initiative known as School Wide Positive Behavior System, or SWPBS. Their creation, implementation and statewide measured success of their I CAN train design was recognized with awards and accolades in Hershey twice. I CAN stands for I am Caring, Always do my best and Need to be safe are the three fundamentals each classroom aspires to excel in. When rewards are given for students who meet these fundamentals, they receive train tickets, which they use to shop at the train store.

To kick off the SWPBS program every year, “I wear my engineer outfit, put my engineer hat on and have a singer sing train songs written for this behavior kickoff program,” FeKula said. “It began several years ago, and I’m so proud of my staff and students who continue to make this behavior initiative program so successful. Each year, the program is rolled out in September. It’s always a pleasure seeing the proud smiles on the kiddos’ faces when they cash in their good behavior train tickets for prizes.”

And surely her career, like anyone else’s, came with its own share of challenges.

“Challenges happened every day. They would range from a problem with a child, or a teacher or a parent. But over the years, I developed strong skills to solve the problems. What could have been something big was ultimately alleviated because I was willing to work through the issues in order to have an outcome that was best for all involved,” FeKula said.

“Many, many times I would hear that there was a parent on their way in to see me, and they were unhappy about something, and I would be warned of them being upset. It was always my goal to have them leave feeling heard, validating their concerns and feeling relieved that I would do my best to resolve the matter. I wanted everyone to feel heard and appreciated,” FeKula said.

Making the decision to retire was obviously not an easy one for FeKula. With more than 38 years in education, FeKula was certainly eligible a few years before she chose to officially retire, which is a testament to how difficult the decision was to make. In February 2016, she decided after many mixed emotions to formally retire as principal of Gockley Elementary School.

“I remember going to the superintendent and crying and crying. Then came the next steps of informing the staff, who all said that even though they knew one day I would retire, they were in shock that that day had really come. It’s so hard especially when I’ve hired 99.9 percent of my current staff. We are more than just a staff. We are like family,” FeKula said with tears filling her eyes.

FeKula acknowledges change is not easy, and, naturally, her staff was concerned to lose her as principal, especially because there was a certain level of comfort and familiarity in the team they had become at Gockley. FeKula considered her staff to be so supportive, largely because she saw such admirable qualities in all of them when she chose them to join her team.

“It was definitely bittersweet for all of us. Every time anyone would walk up to me after February and before the end of the school year and speak to me in reference to my retirement, I would be flooded with emotion. This was such a huge part of my life for so long, and it is hard to say goodbye,” FeKula said.

FeKula and her husband, Dave, live in Danielsville and have two children, Stefany, 24, and Brad, 20. Stefany is an engineer in the Scranton area. Brad is in his junior year of college, studying biology in New York.

FeKula’s husband is retired. So now with her recent retirement, they will be able to spend more time traveling to see their son at college events, visiting their daughter more often and volunteering more with their church, St. Nicholas Catholic Church, Berlinsville.

“It was always my philosophy that as long as school was going on, I should and would be in the building. We never missed a family event at college, but we usually left early to be back in town for the majority of the work week. It will be nice to visit different people and places without feeling the constraints of time. Just to be able to do what I want to do (and) when I want to do it will be a big part of my retirement,” FeKula said.

She’s hoping to travel more and be able to take advantage of the travel bargains at any time during the year, instead of just being able to travel during the summer season.

“It’s been my husband’s dream to go to Florida in the winter, and now we can,” FeKula said.

The FeKulas also are planning a longer time for a college family weekend in Lake Placid in the fall to see their son and the beautiful foliage.

“It will be exciting to head to the beach right after Labor Day and escape the crowds!” FeKula said with a laugh.

In addition to her staff, and certainly equally important, will be how much she will miss the students.

“To walk into a classroom and have the children be happy to see me made everything come full circle for me. I like to think of myself as a gentle and compassionate people-person kind of principal. The children are the reason I do what I do and the reason I chose to be a teacher. They constantly motivated me to be the best I could be for them,” FeKula said. “I will fondly miss their hearts and their hugs the most.”