Spring Trip! by Mike Siekkinen

What do you do with your Spring Break? For years I spent mine with my children but as they have gotten older and moved on, I was left with an empty nest and a wife who worked. So several years ago, another teacher asked me if I would consider doing a Spring Trip for students. I was skeptical at first but agreed and we got with a company called Worldstrides and planned a trip to Washington D.C.

Advertising for the trip was not hard and we ended up having 57 students who signed up for the trip. We had to get several other teachers to come with us for that crowd! It ended up being a wonderful (and tiring) experience. Students were well behaved and the trip set up by the company was excellent. We visited so many places and even with a few snags (a broken tour bus in South Carolina, a couple sick kids, etc.) it was still an enjoyable experience.

We all committed to doing it again as long as we were all still enjoying the kids and the trips. I am doing my 5^th Spring Trip this March. This year is snorkeling in the Keys and visiting the Everglades. I am still enjoying the kids, the trips and it is a wonderful way to spend my Spring Break! Worldstrides has been a great company to work with and has made it very easy with regards to planning the trips, providing needed materials for advertising and the people they have as guides and drivers have been nothing short of excellent! I highly recommend the company.

Dr. Mike Siekkinen, a retired U.S. Navy submariner, became a teacher as a second career. He teaches history at St Marys Middle School as well as Adult and Career Education at Valdosta State in Georgia.