A legend retires

Roberta Buckmiller has worked at Naugatuck High School for 36 years and after this year, her time here will come to an end. After all those years, she has decided to retire and go on to pursue her excellence in other capacities.

During her time at NHS she taught physical education, health, and 17 years ago she started teaching Teen Leadership. In addition, she coached girls’ tennis, was the girl’s athletic association advisor, and was assistant athletic director for five years.

She first learned about Teen Leadership through a program called Capturing Kids’ Hearts, where she learned that you cannot get to a child’s head until you get to their heart. She made it her goal to implement the Teen Leadership Program and Naugatuck and succeeded.

In the past 36 years, Mrs. Buckmiller has made a huge impact on the lives of many students, staff, parents, and everyone in between, myself included. I can confidently state that she played a critical role in my development as a leader and in my success.

For those who have been lucky enough to get to know Mrs. Buckmiller, you know that she is generous, kind, positive, and very passionate about everything she is involved in.

It is sad to see her go, but she will continue to do great things in her retirement. She plans to focus on spending more time with her family as well as continuing her passion for skiing and summers on the Cape.

Thank you Mrs. Buckmiller for all you have done for Naugatuck.