Warwick Neck Elementary School Principal Ann Stratton, who retired in 2011 and passed unexpectedly last September, will be forever memorialized in the school’s library.
Last Thursday, June 2, the school, family and friends joined to dedicate the library in the educator’s name, with the Stratton Club House featuring a mural depicting a lighthouse and a “9th hole,” as Stratton was an avid golfer. The mural was a school-wide initiative, according to Warwick Neck Principal Patricia Cousineau.
Stratton, who was 69 at the time of her death, was born in Providence and received her bachelor’s degree and certificate of advanced studies from Rhode Island College and her Master’s in Education from Providence College. She was an educator for more than 30 years.
Bonnie Robinson and Stratton had gone through higher education together and Robinson spoke at the dedication. She said that Stratton never asked for anything so to have the library dedicated in her name “would have meant the world to her.”
As a principal, Stratton would always encourage students to read so the library dedication seemed appropriate.
The dedication ceremony saw just under 50 guests and featured a “book adoption” where those in attendance could dedicate books to the library in Stratton’s name.
“Students will see her picture and see her name in the donated books and when they ask who she was, please tell them,” Robinson said.
Guest speakers included her former colleagues, Bob Bushell, retired Director of Elementary Education, and Lynn Dambruch, current Director of Elementary Education for Warwick Schools.
“She was the best educator because she truly cared about the kids and their families. She was a social worker at heart,” Bushell said.
Bushell and Stratton would occasionally play golf together, and Bushell had actually spoken to Stratton a few weeks before her passing, commenting that she sounded “strong.”
He said, “She was a top quality educator, always giving, caring and loving. She was a classy lady who worked hard and ran a great school.”
When Dambruch was hired as principal of Robertson Elementary, Stratton was the first person to reach out, offering comfort and support, to promise a helping hand.
“I was blessed with her kindness,” Dambruch said. “I was inspired by her energy and enthusiasm, her commitment to character. Her school was more like a family than anything else and I aspired to run a school the way she did,”
Dambruch assured that Stratton’s memory would continue to be a “champion” for not only the Warwick Neck community but also the entire school system.
To finish out the ceremony nearly 20 teachers who worked under Stratton at Warwick Neck, shared the reasons why they “loved and missed her,” including her love for reading, shopping and golf; her ability to support teachers; her “big ideas” that expanded the scope of teachers’ understanding and abilities; her strength in character and life and her ability to connect and comfort students. They shared personal anecdotes of their experiences with Stratton and how much she is missed.
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