“It just makes me want to cry because I never expected this.”

These words were spoken by Jerry Sue Brannon after the new media center at Ragland School was named in her honor.

When students at the school enter the library, they will be walking into the Jerry Sue Combs Brannon Media Center.

It was in the works for more than a year, and former educator and current St. Clair BOE member Pat Noah and others kept it a surprise.

“The faculty and staff at Ragland School, both past and present, is a unique group of people,” Noah said during her speech. “Each one has his/her special skill or talent to add to the mix. But there is a common thread that runs through us all. We have all been touched by a person whose influence helped make us who and what we are today; a person who taught by example; who disciplined with love and fairness; who mentored with wisdom and passion. From the time this building was just an idea, long before we ever broke ground, we knew this media center would give us an opportunity to honor this person in a very special way.”

Noah added that it is very hard to keep a secret in Ragland — even for one day, let alone over a year. But they tried hard to keep this secret, and Noah was confident they succeeded.

“I feel like this is one of those angel moments,” Noah said.

“It has always been my lifelong dream to instill the love of reading in children,” Brannon said. “And this beautiful new facility will certainly do that. It being named in my honor is just the icing on the cake and something I will always remember. I enjoyed every year I taught. It is what God intended for me to do. I always said growing up I wanted to be a teacher or a nurse. My mother told me when I was around children, I would gather them up, wipe their noses and tell them a story. She said, ‘maybe you ought to be a teacher.’”

Brannon was the first full-time librarian at Ragland School many years ago.

“It had always been part-time with teaching,” Brannon said. “All I ever asked God to let me do was touch the lives of the students I taught. He let me do that, and I hope I continue to be a blessing to those around me.”

Mayor Lanis White said Mrs. Brannon has been a pillar in the community through the years.

“She always set a good example, and I think our younger teachers could learn a lot from her approach to teaching and working with kids,” White said. “The kindness, the compassion she has always shown people. I think it was very fitting they named this library after her.”

St. Clair Schools Superintendent Jenny Seals said Brannon is very deserving of this honor and is a dear, sweet lady.

Joan Ford, a former principal of Ragland School, said she and Brannon grew up in school together and became teachers together. She called it a dream come true and encouraged others to write their dreams down on paper and share their dreams with others.

Ragland Assistant Principal Tammy Echols said Brannon was her librarian/teacher when she was a student.

“She is one of the reasons I wanted to be in education and become a teacher,” Echols said. “I’m excited about this dedication in her honor, and I appreciate everything she has done for our school.”

St. Clair Schools BOE member Terry Green said working with people like Mr. and Mrs. Brannon and getting to know them is what the job is all about for him.

“They have meant so much to this community and this school,” Green said. “There are none better than (these) two. They have meant so much to me as a board member.”

Marie Manning, who takes over for Noah in November as a BOE member, said she knew of no person that deserves the honor that has been given Mrs. Brannon anymore than she deserves it.

“She is a Southern lady,” said Manning. “She is a leader. She is compassionate about education. She deserves every minute of recognition that she can get. I was so proud to see how the community turned out for this function. It was great.”

Contact Gary Hanner at ghanner@thestclairtimes.com.