First gentleman reads to local students

The children in Tamra Ireland’s third-grade class at Windsor Elementary School may have been getting a little antsy for the last day of school last week, but their attention soon was focused on the special visitor who came to read to them.

First gentleman Mike Gregoire stopped by the class to read from the book “The True Story of the 3 Little Pigs,” by Jon Scieszka and Lane Smith. Gregoire said he chose that book because it tells the classic children’s tale from the wolf’s point of view.

“Everybody knows the story of the three little pigs,” Gregoire read from a rocking chair at the front of the classroom. “At least they think they do.”

The students welcomed Gregoire by drawing a picture of the BFG, the Big Friendly Giant from the Roald Dahl book, on the dry-erase board. A bubble from the BFG’s mouth said, “Welcome First Mike.”

The visit was Gregoire’s 99th visit to a school to read to children. He has been making the trips to schools in all 39 counties of Washington state since December 2005. The 100th visit, and the last of the school year, was to Sheridan Elementary School in Spokane shortly after his trip to Windsor.

Over the years, he has visited local schools: Holmes Elementary, Michael Anderson Elementary and Audubon Elementary.

Kay Aucutt, the principal of the school, said she wasn’t sure why Windsor was chosen for the visit, but she knows that her students have made a commitment to reading. The students had a contest for free passes to Silverwood if they read a certain number of books, and when Aucutt asked the kids how many of them won a pass, nearly all of them raised their hands.

“They’ve been working hard on reading,” Aucutt said.

“They love to be read to as well,” said Ireland.

Gregoire said he has been making these visits to classrooms to encourage the students to read. Teaching is something Gregoire has always been interested in because his 87-year-old mother was a school teacher for many years and still volunteers at schools today. Both he and his wife, the governor, were trained and educated as teachers before their careers took them in different directions.

Gregoire explained to the students that he was married to Gov. Chris Gregoire and even told them a little bit about how they met.

He brought along a book called “E is for Evergreen” by Marie and Roland Smith and Linda Holt Ayriss.

“It’s a book about your great state of Washington,” he told the class. He had it signed by the governor and left it for the class to keep.

He told the students that there was a word that started with each letter of the alphabet that helped describe the state.

While Gregoire read from the 3 Little Pigs, the students were able to interact with him as he also asked them questions, like what the students thought of a house made of straw and whether they would like to live in one of those.

“It wouldn’t work last night,” said one girl in the class.

After Gregoire finished reading the story, he answered questions from the students. He had told the class that he was in the military during Vietnam, and many of the students talked about their parents, grandparents or friends that had served or are currently serving.

Gregoire also told the students about Trooper, the first dog. The students thought it was funny that sometimes the dog will go through the governor’s purse or suitcase.

“He’s kind of taken over the family,” Gregoire told the students.

When Gregoire was almost ready to leave, he passed out postcards with a picture of him and Trooper on the front and fun facts about the state on the back and pencils with the governor’s name on them.

The first gentleman said his favorite part about visiting the classrooms is the questions the students ask him.

“The questions are truly amazing,” he said. “I’ve had third-graders ask about Agent Orange.”

The classroom also got to keep “The True Story of the 3 Little Pigs,” the book he read to most of the classrooms he has visited.

“They love to hear the wolf’s side of the well-known story of the three little pigs,” Gregoire said in a statement. “I hope my visits will spark a habit of reading at home with parents or siblings.”