Student’s letter wins new furnishings for teachers lounge

On March 5, the teachers lounge at Miller Middle School was transformed into a much more comfortable environment, thanks to Walker Furniture’s 14th annual Valentine Teacher Appreciation Day program.

Each year, Walker Furniture, in cooperation with the Clark County School District School-Community Partnership Program, gives Southern Nevada students an opportunity to win new furnishings for their teachers lounge by writing a letter describing their favorite teacher. This year, Miller Middle School won, thanks to a letter written by 11-year-old Madison Johnson on behalf of her sixth-grade reading teacher, Debra Simonetti.

The teachers lounge, which previously had only a few tables and stackable chairs, is now complete with a brand-new leather sofa, love seat, occasional table, book cases, end table, lamp, wall art, a decorative tree and a plant.

Following the delivery and installation of furnishings, Madison’s class received a pizza party, at which the teacher and student were presented with certificates for their achievements. Walker Furniture is also having a commemorative plaque with photos of the event made for the school. For her letter, Madison was presented with $100 from Walker Furniture. At the event, Simonetti expressed her gratitude to Madison and Walker Furniture.

“I was very emotional when I saw the letter Madison wrote,” Simonetti said. “We have so many wonderful teachers in the school district and to be considered such a special teacher to Madison was very touching. I’ve been teaching for 26 years and never experienced anything quite like this. I think it’s also very kind of Walker Furniture to sponsor this program each year.”

Madison said writing the letter about Simonetti was easy.

“When I heard about the contest, I knew right away that I wanted to write about Ms. Simonetti,” she said. “She is so kind and cares about all of her students. She has helped all of us grow and be the best we can be. At first, I was nervous about taking this class, but thanks to Ms. Simonetti, it quickly became one of my favorites.”

Linda Alterwitz, community projects director for Walker Furniture, was on hand to congratulate Johnson and Simonetti. She said the student’s letter was chosen from among more than 500 that were submitted.

“Throughout the year, Walker Furniture contributes to a variety of community-related causes,” Alterwitz said. “Teacher Appreciation Day is particularly gratifying to us because it involves our local students and their teachers. Madison wrote about an exceptional teacher who understands her students’ needs, cares about all of her students and goes the extra step by making their work both challenging and fun.

“It’s our pleasure to present Ms. Simonetti and the entire staff at Bob Miller Middle School with these new furnishings, and we congratulate Madison Johnson for her very well-written and heartfelt letter.”