Lida Beaudoin and Ed Barkowski Retire from Proctor Academy

Lida Beaudoin: 32 Years of Service

Lida Beaudoin joined the Proctor Dining Services team in 1985 before eventually moving to manage the bookstore in 1988. Throughout her entire career, Lida’s impact on the Proctor community transcended her title, as she developed remarkable relationships with the student body through her work.

Lida Beaudoin: "an enormous impact on the community" — Lida Beaudoin: “an enormous impact on the community”

Through her roles as book store manager, field hockey coach, Proctor parent (James ‘96), and ardent supporter of Proctor athletics in general, Lida made an enormous impact on the Proctor community. She rarely missed a home basketball game, and the echos of Lida screaming “Rebound!” from her front row seat on the bleachers will be dearly missed by basketball teams next year.

Boys basketball coach Gregor Makechnie ‘90 adds, “Lida remained as committed to her basketball players off the court as she did on it. She welcomed them warmly in the school bookstore, offering words of encouragement in the days leading up to games and congratulations or comfort (and occasionally some pointed suggestions) following games. After graduation, she continued to track players because, of course, she cared about a lot more than basketball. Proctor Basketball wishes Lida well as she retires. She will remain Number 1 in our hearts.”

Lida’s colleague in the bookstore, Alex Estin ‘83 notes, “Lida has touched so many people in her time at Proctor. She would do anything for any student, and for some of her special ones she would bakes goodies for them occasionally. She has touched the heart of so many students in her time here and will be so missed!”

Ed Barkowski: 30 Years of Service

Ed Barkowski: "a mentor and strong role model" — Ed Barkowski: “a mentor and strong role model”

Since 1987, Ed Barkowski has been an integral part of the Proctor community, first joining Art Makechnie’s kitchen staff as a cook before shifting to manage the Wise Center in 2005. Through the relationships he built with students, both in the kitchen and in the Wise Center, Ed has taught incredibly valuable life lessons centered on hard work, responsibility, and integrity to countless Proctor students over the years.

We often say there are no walls to classrooms at Proctor, and Ed epitomized this by viewing his role managing the Wise Center as being as much about educating students as it was about making the facility run smoothly. Dean of Faculty Karl Methven reflects, “Ed is an incredibly caring person who understood the value of teaching young people how to work hard, while remaining patient with their ‘not yet development.’”

Ed’s two children (Ed ‘99 and Christine ‘01) graduated from Proctor, and his commitment to the school over the past 30 years has been remarkable. Student Life Coordinator Lisa Scarry notes, “He showered the students with tough love, and they respected and loved him for that. He was a mentor, strong role model, teacher for all the students, and lived by our core values every day.”

Congratulations to Lida and Ed on their retirements, and thank you for your years of service!