This article is part of a series by The Vicksburg Post, in partnership with the Vicksburg-Warren County Chamber of Commerce, featuring each of the nominees for teacher of the year honors.

In an interview with The Vicksburg Post in 2015, St. Francis teacher Martha Amborn said the reason she had remained in teaching so long was simple; the children.

“I do it for the children,” she said. “Seeing them grow from the beginning of the year to the end of the year is fun to watch. You see them grow in a lot of different ways, not just academically, but spiritually and mentally.”

Amborn is one of the area teachers nominated for the Vicksburg-Warren County Chamber of Commerce’s Teacher of the Year awards.

The chamber will select and announce one elementary and one secondary teacher of the year at the chamber luncheon on Feb. 25. The winner of each award will receive $1,000 from Ameristar Casino and the runner-up for each award will receive $500 from Mutual Credit Union.

This school year marks Amborn’s 43rd year teaching and its the little things that make the experience so rewarding.

“When a struggling student came running up to me, giving me a big hug and saying ‘Mrs. Amborn, we did it! I passed my test! Thank you,'” Amborn recalled. “This child never gave up.”

Originally from the Delta, Amborn married into a family with a rich history of tradition at St. Aloysius and St. Francis.

“My husband (Charlie Amborn) graduated from St. Al, and my three children (Abigayle, Amanda and Charlie) went to St. Francis and St. Al,” she said in her 2015 interview with The Post. “It’s been a big family for a long time.”

Amborn received a business degree from Delta State College and then received her elementary education degree attending classes at the University of Mississippi, Alcorn State, Mississippi College and Delta State.

Prior to teaching at St. Francis, Amborn taught sixth grade at Redwood Elementary from 1969 to 1973.

She taught second grade at St. Francis beginning in 1980 before moving to fourth grade in 1991.

During her previous interview, Amborn said sometimes a student will walk in and she will know exactly who their parents are.