Making History

Gracie Smith
MSMU Class of 2027

(1/2025) "Middle school sucked". It is a common phrase spoken by middle schoolers around the country. Nevertheless, it holds even to this day. During my middle school years, I always faced new challenges—mostly that of being alone. In 6th grade, I had one friend, my friend of nearly 10 years at that point. However, he and I never crossed paths since we had all different teachers and different "teams" as our school did. In my first year of middle school, I was left to fend for myself in a way I suppose I never had to before. I made new acquaintances, though nothing to brag about. Navigated my way around the new building and even survived gym class and my first encounter with locker rooms. As someone who was painfully shy and honestly preferred to be alone, I hated myself for being the way I was; so introverted.

7th grade came and went rather quickly. However, that year I reconnected with some friends I had made in preschool. These connections ultimately guided me to finish that year of school. It was also that year I became more and more confident in myself. I was asked to give a presentation to my entire class on Crohn’s Disease, which I would say turned out pretty successfully.

It wasn’t until 8th grade that I learned it was okay to like something other than science. This was all thanks to my history teacher, Mr. Robert Housch. I remember the first day of class, and I thought immediately to myself "Oh my gosh, I’m going to hate this class." I went home to my mother that day and shared with her everything about my first day and she told me, "Gracie, you’re going to love that class."

I thought about her words for the next few days, still not fully convinced. However, Mr. Housch was all about routine, as was I. Quickly, I recognized the routine and came overly prepared to class, ready to answer each question. So much so that I was competing with my best friend to see who could throw their hand up the fastest. My favorite memory of being in Mr. Housch’s class was acting out the Battle of Bunker Hill. We went outside to the hill behind the middle school, and acted out the battle, running uphill and "loading" our bayonets. In addition to our fine acting skills, we were required to memorize the Preamble to the Constitution. Mr. Housch had played for us a song that, to this day, I can still recite. My favorite part of the course, however, was Gettysburg. Having always been fascinated by it since it’s 20 minutes from my house, I took to this unit rather quickly. It was a cold January day when Mr. Housch gave me and my class a tour of the Gettysburg Battlefield since he is a Licensed Battlefield Guide himself. It was at this point that I realized what I wanted to study.

I left Middle School a very different person than the one I was when I entered. I was very disappointed I couldn’t just have Mr. Housch teach me history in High School too. Nonetheless, I was moved by his passion for History. When my little brother Jack was in the 8th grade, I was overjoyed to hear that he also would have Mr. Housch to teach him. I have to admit, I saw an opportunity and I took it. I emailed Mr. Housch as a junior in High School and asked to chaperone Jack’s trip to Gettysburg. He wrote back and was more than willing to have me chaperone. I think I was more excited about the field trip than my brother. The trip this time was a bit different. I not only knew what to expect, but I was able to retain and appreciate more of what Mr. Housch was explaining about the battle. This led me to study it some more in my free time and visit Gettysburg with my father and my aunt - I wrote about those adventures in another article.

When it came time to graduate, I had a very important decision to make. Not where I wanted to go, but what I wanted to study. I was faced with the pressure of going into the medical field since A) that’s where the money is, and B) my family "saw me working in a lab". Both of those points are hard to dispute. However, I decided to put what I wanted and what would make me happy ahead of what would make others happy. Thus, I chose to major in History. Had Mr. Housch not fueled my interest and now passion for History, I would not be accomplishing the things I am today. Despite Mr. Housch encouraging me to study law, I decided that might not be the best field since I tend to cry during arguments.

Mr. Housch taught me in middle school, aided me in high school, and is still guiding me in college. Last summer he met with me and my father to help me train for the Licensed Battlefield Guide Exam that I just took in early December. The exam contained 161 questions and 3 essays. After nearly 2 years of preparation, Mr. Housh supplied me with yet another tour of the battlefield, as well as suggested readings and practice questions for the exam. Never in my life have I encountered someone who wants so much to see people succeed in doing what they love best.

Mr. Housch, thank you for making history fun. Thank you for normalizing a passion for the past. Thank you for your time, your effort, and your support to help me accomplish my dreams. You have made such a lasting impact on me and my future. I hope to influence and impact people in the same way you led me to study history. Knowledge is power, and our history is forever relevant.