Frederick Douglass once said, “It is easier to build strong children than to repair broken men.  

” We live in a world that requires that the most innocent of these, our children, be strengthened and fundamentally challenged. It is evident that the foundation of a person’s life is of utmost

importance. We were blessed to have a beautiful foundation and childhood that set the pace for

us. We spent most of our childhood life at our grandparent’s house. Pembroke Academy is named after our grandfather, Leroy Pembroke Hanna. Though it was his wife, our grandmother Gwen,

who took the more hands on approach to our learning experiences, it was at his house where it

all took place.

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‘Pemmy’, as he was affectionately called, was a stickler for education. His house was the home of our first school. This was the place where we lined up our dolls and told them they had to learn their ABC’s and 123’s. Pemmy’s house was where we learned about music, sewing, and arts and

crafts. It was here that we learned all the lessons, met the most interesting people and made so many memories. Our grandmother ensured that our learning experiences were fun, enjoyable

and hands on. She found the most interesting ways and used the simplest resources to bring

her lessons across. We learned so much every day though it didn’t feel that way because it was

so enjoyable.

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Pemmy’s house was often crowded, noisy, and overbearing with all his gran and great grand children scurrying around, but he never said a word. He never distracted or denied us of our learning experiences. Later in our educational life, through our elementary and high school years, he would consistently ask to see our report cards. We knew that he would richly reward us for every ‘A’ and effort made for the semester past. In his quiet, unassuming way, he reminded us daily of the value of education. He so willingly allowed his home to be the very first site for our passion, inspiration and love for children and learning to begin.

 

It was at ‘HIS’ house, and it is our hope to make Pembroke Academy a home to so many children who too will develop a love of learning and and their passion in life. He not only left a

name, but a legacy and that is the Pembroke way!