The saying goes that good teachers are made, not born.

Kristy Imhof begs to differ.

The Ransom Middle School language arts teacher believes the classroom has been her calling since birth.

“I was born to be a teacher,” Imhof told a group of teachers at a roundtable workshop. “I didn’t have a choice.”

Whether Imhof was born or made a teacher is debatable, but it’s indisputable that she found her calling. And her success in helping students reach their potential hasn’t gone unnoticed.

Imhof last month was named Escambia County’s 2017 Teacher of the Year. On Thursday, she joined more than 40 former and current educators at the annual Golden Apple Academy Teacher of the Year Roundtable at Azalea Trace in Pensacola.

Kristy Imhof, Escambia County 2017 Teacher of the Year

Teacher of the Year winners representing more than 20 Escambia County schools attended the daylong workshop to share their experiences, learn new things and build better and stronger relationships.

The session kicked off with a message from Escambia schools Superintendent Malcolm Thomas, followed with words of encouragement and professional development training from Quint Studer, local entrepreneur and founder of Studer Community Institute.

Studer told the teachers to never underestimate the impact they have. He encouraged them to embrace mentors and sought their input on what improving kindergarten readiness would mean in their classrooms, for their students and in the community at large.

During the session, the teachers engaged in table assignments, collaborating and answering a series of questions about education.

The questions: “What makes you grateful to be a teacher?” and “Why I became teacher,” brought thoughtful responses, laughter and tears.

Beulah Elementary School teacher Melissa Harold said being a teacher was more than academics. She enjoys making connections and watching the children grow and develop.

“I have kids who call me mom,” Harold said.

Lauren Ambrose, who teaches at Myrtle Grove Elementary School, likes the idea of helping students from the inside out.

“I get the opportunity to, not only teach, but help them feel better about themselves,” she said.

Eyes welled up with tears when Allison Hartzog told her table why she started teaching.

Hartzog said she planned to work in healthcare or in pharmaceutical sales until she had surgery and discovered she would never have children.

“I knew then that I wanted to become a teacher, and I now have 22 kids,” said Hartzog, a teacher at Montclair Elementary School. “They are my babies.”

It is those kinds of stories that highlight the importance of teaching and showcase the difference teachers in young people’s lives.

When people reflect on their best teachers, they remember the ones who connected with them. They may have been classroom teachers, afterschool coaches, band directors or principals.

They are the one who patted you on the back, knew your name and made you when you felt like crying.

They were real, down-to-earth human beings, offering encouragement and building confidence, saying things like: “I know you can do it! Come on, let’s get it done.”

The dedicated, selfless work educators do each day is among the many reasons that Imhof decided to become a teacher at age 20. It explains why she went to work for a professional development company to assist help teachers learn how to become better at their craft.

It’s why Imhof returned to the classroom as a part-time teacher at Santa Rosa Adult School, and eventually to Ransom Middle School.

It’s why the Escambia schools named her the best teacher among many in the district.

After receiving her award, Imhof told the Pensacola News Journal: “For me, I enjoy feeling the love they have for me and I get tremendous satisfaction knowing that they know I love them. Feeling that from them, what I put out to them, it’s kind of like what Oprah Winfrey always says, ‘When you give out, it comes back to you tenfold’, and I really do believe that.” It’s quality, effective teachers like Imhof that make things happen by making a difference in the classroom everyday.

Teachers motivate. They synthesize information to help students understand. Teachers listen, coach and mentor.

Whether they are born or made, the best teachers matter because they make a difference.