Leah Ann Quinley Overstreet passed away Tuesday, October 27, 2009 from complications due to the flu and pneumonia. Leah Ann was the principal of Delta Elementary School in Baldwin County, AL.

Leah Ann graduated from BCHS in 1975. She was a cheerleader, Senior standout in Journalism, a member of the National Honor Society, and Key Club Favorite.

Leah Ann's enthusiasm and encouragement will be missed.

Leah Ann, the Class of '75 celebrates your life.
Would you like to share a memory you have of Leah Ann? Send itand it will be posted here.

Swine flu takes life of Baldwin County elementary school principal; 'No. 1 crusader for education'

By Craig Myers

Reprinted with permission from al.com and the Mobile Press-Register.

October 29, 2009, 9:01AM

BAY MINETTE, Ala. -- She was the petite leader of one of Baldwin's tiniest schools, but Leah Ann Overstreet's personality and passion for education have left a large and lasting mark on the county.

Overstreet, 52, principal of Delta Elementary in White House Fork, died Tuesday at Mobile Infirmary after a three-week illness confirmed by doctors to have been swine flu, her sister-in-law Joyce Overstreet said.

She is survived by her husband, Ricky Overstreet; son, A'Lanson Hoffman; and mother, Iona Quinley. Visitation will be from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. Friday at First Baptist Church in Bay Minette, with the funeral at 11 a.m. Saturday at the church. Burial will be at Bay Minette Cemetery.
"I feel the No. 1 crusader for Baldwin County education has gone on to be with the Father," said Joyce Overstreet. "I don't know anyone in north Baldwin who did more for education and was willing to put himself or herself out there for the kids.

"Her focus was on them, always had been, and providing an environment where her teachers could not only teach but do well. Leah Ann was the life of the party. She walked in the room and said, 'Hey y'all,' and it immediately brightened up," she said.

Hired in 1987 as a first-grade teacher at Loxley Elementary, she taught at other schools before becoming a full-time administrative intern at Perdido School in 2003, officials said.

In 2004 she was appointed to her first principal's position, at Delta Elementary, one of the county's smallest with 300 students in kindergarten through sixth grade.

"She made a dramatic impact, not only the things she set in place but her personality -- always a bubbly, positive personality. She was a good role model, a good educator and a good administrator," said Sandy Johnson, a teacher at Delta for 20 years. "She embraced Delta as her own, and every student was important to her."

Co-workers said Overstreet refused to let them get down even in the midst of deep education system budget cuts.

"Every morning when she made the morning announcements she would say, 'It's a great day at Delta School,'" Johnson said. "In education there are always challenges, but with people in place like Leah Ann, we knew we'd band together and make it a good day for the students."

Schools Superintendent Faron Hollinger said Overstreet worked her way up through a rigorous selection process to a "good fit" at Delta. From the start, she was a strong advocate for improvement and wouldn't take "no" for an answer, he said.

"She was not shy at all to pick up the phone and call me about particular needs," he said. "She hadn't been there very long when she called me up and said she communicated with the county commissioners and they agreed to come out and pave the parking lot."

Hollinger visited the campus Wednesday and was "touched" by the affection of teachers, parents and students for Overstreet.

"Her legacy and memory will go on through the lives she touched, particularly the children at Delta."

Longtime friend Martha Rabon, principal of Pine Grove Elementary, said a Ralph Waldo Emerson quote summarizes Overstreet: "Nothing great was ever achieved without enthusiasm."

"She was short, but a go-getter. ... She would say, 'I know my purpose,' and she did," Rabon said.

"In the last few weeks she was just going 90-to-nothing. ... There was something deep within her that she just had a deep sense of God's power and love," Rabon said. "When she needed to stay with the battle, she stayed with it.

"I think her work on earth was done."
 

Do you have an antedote or special memory about good ole BCHS? Send it!

Got a photo from the "good old days"? We want it.