VAN, Texas — Heidi Moore has taught within Van ISD for the past 25 years. In that time, she's educated thousands of students at various campuses within the district. However, her career took a turn when she suffered a stroke on Oct. 10 that left her needing surgery on her head.
“I don’t remember any of that. Some people have told me it is best that I not remember," Moore said.
On that day, the longtime educator admits it started out normal. She started to feel initial signs of sickness after only a few hours of teaching.
“When it hit I knew that it was not, it was not good," Moore said.
It wasn't long before the students realized Moore started to show signs of struggle. Bo Penny, a fifth grader in her history class, asked his teacher if she needed help.
"You could start to see that something…it wasn’t right," Penny said.
Penny continued to ask Moore if she was OK, to which she tried to ease his concerns by minimizing the pain she felt.
“I would have to get up and go to the restroom because, again I was so nauseated," Moore said.
Penny said his teacher lost her balance and struggled to get back up. It was in that moment when this young boy took initiative to help someone he deeply cared for.
“The last thing I remember from that day is hearing his feet running down the hall," Moore said.
The fifth grader ran down the hall and made it to the front office. He asked for the nurse to help his teacher who was experiencing a stroke. Shortly after, the principal of the school was notified.
“I was actually off campus that day. Received a phone call saying, “Hey, Mrs. Moore’s having some trouble. They’re going to have to call an ambulance for her,'" said Jeremy Peterson, principal of Van Middle School.
It wasn't long before Moore was rushed to surgery on her head that she said left her with a permanent scar. Once she arrived back home, she slowly started her recovery process which included small exercises, increased health regiments and plenty of rest.
Shortly after, she said she received nothing but kind words and love through social media messages and get well cards from family, friends and even her own students.
“To think, these are my people. This is my town, and they love me. Wow, how blessed am I,” Moore said.
On Nov. 13, Penny was given a "Van-Tastic" award by the Van ISD board of trustees for his heroic actions in running to get help for Moore.
Moore also attended the meeting and gave her student a warm hug in the process. He said the reason he helped her is because she's always been there to help him.
“She’s always just there for you no matter what," Penny said.
As of now, there's no date on when Moore will return to the classroom. She shared her doctors advise that she focus on recovery until the idea can be reevaluated. However, Moore said it's not a matter of if but when.