A Heartfelt Thank You to Christine Lewis — Our School Administrative Assistant Extraordinaire
In Recognition of Administrative Professionals Day, April 22
They say that behind every great school is a great principal. They are wrong. Behind every great school is a great administrative assistant who quietly makes sure the principal — and everyone else — actually knows what they're doing.
At Bassano School, that person is Christine Lewis.
Christine manages the front office with a kind of calm, competent grace that most of us have simply come to take for granted — which, if we're being honest, is perhaps the greatest testament to how well she does her job. Phones are answered. Forms are filed. Schedules are untangled. Emergencies are handled before most of us even realize there was an emergency. The school runs. It just runs. And somewhere in the middle of all of that invisible magic is Christine.
But what truly sets Christine apart goes far beyond organizational wizardry. Christine knows our community. She knows our families — the ones who have been part of Bassano for generations, our rural families navigating the particular joys and challenges of life on the land, and our families from Siksika Nation, whose children she welcomes with the same warmth and familiarity as everyone else who walks through those doors. She remembers names. She remembers circumstances. She understands context in a way that no policy manual could ever teach, and she brings that understanding to every interaction with patience, dignity, and genuine care.
For students, she is often the first friendly face in the building and sometimes the most reassuring one in a difficult moment. For families, she is a trusted navigator through the sometimes bewildering world of school administration. For staff, she is — quite frankly — the person who keeps the whole operation from drifting quietly out to sea.
Christine, your dedication is tireless, your knowledge is invaluable, and your impact on this school community is immeasurable. You are the kind of person who makes an institution feel like a community, and a community feel like home.
On behalf of the staff and students of Bassano School, thank you — sincerely, wholeheartedly, and with the full acknowledgment that we absolutely could not do this without you.
Happy Administrative Professionals Day. You deserve every bit of it.