Watch A Kindergarten Teacher And Former Student Reunite After She Sees Him On TV

There’s nothing better than reconnecting with an old teacher, right? Especially one from when we were a child.

That’s exactly what Cory Hepola got to do recently—re-meet his kindergarten teacher, Lorly Schik, nearly 30 years later.

But how did the two reconnect?

Hepola lived in several different states before going back home to Minnesota, where he works as KARE 11’s Sunrise Anchor. Schik, on the other hand, didn’t move around as much. After retiring from the Perham school district in 1989, she planned to travel with her husband. However, he died suddenly, and she remained in Perham for 25 more years. In 2013, when she was almost 90, she moved to the Twin Cities to live in an independent senior living complex and to be closer to her family.

While watching the news one day, Schik recognized Hepola, who’d been in her class in 1988.

She decided to write his parents a note, which is excerpted here:

“Hi Diane & Terry. It is with a great deal of pride that I am now watching my former Kindergarten student telecast the news on KARE 11. I can still picture him as a small dark haired child in his K-desk!… Greet Cory. Tell him his K-teacher is now 90 years old, enjoys seeing his newscast, and wishes him (and you, too) the VERY BEST!”

Hepola then wrote Mrs. Schik back, saying,I just had to tell Mrs. Schik how much her note meant to me. And, really, how much she meant to me.” He also asked her if she’d like to meet.

Watch their reunion above, but don’t forget your tissues.

 

Life

About the Author
Natalia Lusinski
In addition to Simplemost, Natalia is an ongoing writer for Bustle (sex, dating, relationships, and money), HelloGiggles (pop culture and news), The Delite (feel-good stories), and Don’t Waste Your Money (yep, money issues!). You can also find her writing in the L.A. Times, the Chicago Tribune's RedEye, xoJane, Elite Daily, Scary Mommy, Elephant Journal, and Chicken Soup for the Soul anthologies, among other publications. She has a Ph.D. in couch-surfing, having spent four years sleeping on over 200 L.A.-area love seats and sectionals, all in an effort to whittle down her student loan debt. She still loves couch-surfing in other cities, too (hint, hint).

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