Tammy Schermerhorn’s smiling face is the first thing people see when they enter Oriole Beach Elementary School, where she has served as secretary for the last six years. Scott Page/Gulf Breeze News Say hello to “the face of OBE.” As soon as you walk through the doors at Oriole Beach Elementary School, you’ll be greeted by the warm smile of Mrs. Tammy Schermerhorn, the school’s secretary.

She’s been “the face” of OBE for six years, and Schermerhorn admits it is a big responsibility.

“As the secretary at Oriole Beach Elementary School I greet everyone as they enter the school,” Schermerhorn said. “I am considered to be "the face of OBE," which I consider to be my biggest responsibility.

“Being the first person that new parents and students meet is important because at OBE our philosophy is for everyone to immediately feel like they are at home. When I can make families that are new to our school and community immediately feel comfortable and at ease then I know that I have been successful.”

Schermerhorn, however, is more than just a face.

“I also book conferences for teachers, answer an enormous amount of emails and assist our two administrators. Singing the Happy Birthday song to children and staff and giving them a birthday sticker also falls under my responsibilities.

“Probably my most difficult responsibility is the running of afternoon dismissal from the school intercom system. We want all 750 of our children to get home safe and sound! The truth of the matter is that my job is very easy for me because I know in my heart that OBE is the best place to be!”

She said working at OBE is like being a part of a great, big family.

“It's great to be a Sea Turtle because we are a family. I love my job, the people I work with and our precious students. Feeling loved and appreciated every single day is nothing short of amazing. I can't imagine having any other job in the world.

“The best thing about my job is the children. I love seeing their smiling faces and getting my hugs each day. At the beginning of each school year, I am so excited for them to come back!

“I love seeing how much they've grown, hearing what they did over the summer and seeing their excited faces for the new year.”

Schermerhorn has a tip for new OBE students joining the family.

“My advice to incoming students is to always treat each person like you want to be treated. At OBE we try to be ‘bucket fillers,’ which means that if each person has an invisible bucket we want to fill it up so that they will feel happy and loved. We never want to dip from anyone's bucket by saying or doing hurtful things.”

When she’s not welcoming everyone to OBE, Schermerhorn enjoys gardening, trips to Disney World and spoiling her nephew, Luke. “Oh and I do try to convince all of our students that LSU has the best football team. I collect any and everything LSU.”

Schermerhorn has been married for 25 years to husband Clarence, with whom she has two daughters – Ashley and Amanda, who are both graduates of OBE.

STAFF SPOTLIGHT

¦ Who: Tammy Schermerhorn
¦ Position: Oriole Beach
Elementary Secretary
¦ Years at school: 6
¦ Family: Husband Clarence
Schermerhorn and daughters
Ashley and Amanda, who
are both graduates of OBE.
¦ Other interests: Gardening,
going to Disney World, and
everything LSU!