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Show Purdy retires after 35 years as educator Li in I . KAYSVILLE-Gerald Purdy, a veteran educator who became a civic leader and president of a national education association, is retiring from the Davis County School District after 35 years as a teacher, coach and administrator. "He will be best known for his accomplishments which impacted the lives of students," said Mike Duckworth, principal of Davis High SchooL "Jerry was always well-liked well-liked and well-respected by the students and the staff members.' Purdy began his career as an instructor in-structor and coach at Davis High School in 1955 and coached his athletic teams to a variety of state and regional championships. He later became the vice principal of Clearfield High School before returning as an assistant principal at Davis High in 1976. A graduate of the University of Utah, he served on the Kaysville City Council for 12 years and as the city's mayor from 1981-89, and was appointed a member of the governor's gover-nor's advisory council on community communi-ty affairs. He was also a chairman of the Wasatch Front Regional Council of Governments and the Davis County Council of Governments. Govern-ments. In 1988 he became the first vice principal ever to win election as president of the 42,000-member National Association of Secondary School Principals headquartered in Reston, Va. His retirement plan s are "on hold," he laughs, since he is currently cur-rently a candidate for the Republican nomination for the Davis County Commission. "No one enters education for the monetary rewards' he says. 'Looking back, the real reward for me was the opportunity to see the educational growth of many thousands of students, men and women who are now contributing to their own families and communities. com-munities. It's an excitement that money could never buy. ' ' Jerry and his wife Faye, an instructor in-structor at Kaysville Junior High School, are the parents of four children. They have 11 grandchildren. GERALD PURDY |