Olympian returns to work amid heroes reception
Posted on Tuesday, August 26, 2008
ANTHONY REYES Northwest Arkansas Times April Steiner-Bennett returned to her teaching position at Hellstern Middle School in Springdale after competing in the pole vault in the 2008 Beijing Olympics. Steiner-Bennett finished eighth overall in the event and hopes to compete in the next Olympics in 2012.
SPRINGDALE - The school mascot is the Hero, so it's fitting Hellstern Middle School would welcome the return of its own real-life hero.
April Steiner-Bennett, who's beginning her third year as a physical education and health teacher at Hellstern, was feted with a hero's return Monday morning. The student population and faculty crowded into the school's cafeteria for a special assembly honoring the Olympian and former Arkansas Razorback who returned from China Satur- day after finishing eighth in the women's pole vault.
She didn't medal in Beijing, but Steiner-Bennet received a faux Olympic medal during the assembly. The festivities also included Springdale mayor Jerry Van Hoose giving her the key to the city, the Springdale Har-Ber High band playing "The Star-Spangled Banner"and the unveiling of a banner that will hang in the school's foyer. It displays Steiner-Bennett's name over the words," Our Olympic Hero."
Steiner-Bennett, 28, wasn't informed of what the assembly entailed. She was only told to wear the blazer and blouse that adorned her during the Olympics' opening ceremony.
"They wouldn't tell me what they were doing," Steiner-Bennett said. "They just told me what to wear and kind of kept hiding me in little corners of the school. It was more than I ever could've expected. I can't believe they did all this. They just really went above and beyond for me and took time out of their school day. To do this, it was rewarding. I'm all grins."
She regaled the students with stories from her Olympic experience, recounting how she met former president George H. W. Bush and current president George W. Bush. One of her biggest thrills was rubbing elbows with the U. S. men's basketball team. She stood next to Kobe Bryant during the opening ceremony and talked at length with the Utah Jazz's Carlos Boozer.
"He and I talked about how cool it was to be a part of [the Olympics ]," Steiner-Bennett told the assembly of students. "I kind of made a friend there. Every time I saw him after that at their training site or the gym, he'd come up to me and say'what's up. ' He was so cool. It ended up that they're human just like us.
"I'm sure if I visited the sideline of the Utah Jazz, he wouldn't know me from the man on the moon, but I had a moment with him, and I'm excited about it."
When Steiner-Bennett's speech took a more serious tone, she talked about setting goals. On her chalkboard at home, Beijing was listed as an ambition after she finished fifth in the 2004 Olympic Trials. Now London, site of the 2012 Summer Olympics, is written on the board.
Her colleague and fellow physical education teacher at Hellstern, Brett Unger, said Steiner-Bennett's athletic endeavors are important to her, but they don't interfere with her professional life.
"I'd put her up against anybody as far as work ethic," Unger said. "She's very disciplined in how she eats, her sleep regimen and her workout regimen, and she's very dedicated to her job here. She doesn't slack at her job because of pole vault. She thrives at both of them."
At a school where heroes are revered, Steiner-Bennett said she wanted her sixth and seventh-grade students to know the dedication and commitment needed to become a real-life one.
"A hero just doesn't happen," she said. "It's not overnight. You have to work and never give up."
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