Fort Larned USD 495

Annie "Brenner" Armstrong is a LHS alumni, graduating in the class of 1969. Since leaving Larned, she has taught for 42 years and lives in Fairbanks, Alaska. Annie's niece, Ms. Polston, is currently a 6th grade teacher at our middle school. Ms. Polston's students had the opportunity to connect with Annie today via Zoom and took turns standing up to ask her questions. She told us about a moose that was in her backyard this past weekend (some classes got to see the marks in the snow!), how Alaska has had 172 earthquakes in the last week, and the difference in darkness and lightness throughout the year where she lives. Annie told the students a story about watching the news with her dad one night in 1959 when Alaska became the 49th state. She describes remembering how beautiful the pictures were and the desire to want to move there someday. After attending college in Montana and then Washington, she convinced her parents to let her visit Alaska for the summer and she has not left since. When asked what she misses about Larned, she mentions the sense of community and the swimming pool. She says that Alaska reminds her of home in Kansas because of the wide open space and the kind people. Thank you, Annie, for taking the time to visit with our students!