Honoring our Great-Hearted Veterans: Sandra Spoon

On this Veteran’s Day, we are privileged to count among our faculty and staff the men and women who have worn the uniform of our nation’s armed forces. Their courage, discipline, and devotion to service embody the same virtues we cultivate in the minds and hearts of our students.

Sandra Spoon serves Great Hearts as the District Test Coordinator, Teacher Assistant, and Drama Technical Director at Lincoln Prep. Growing up a “military brat,” Spoon decided to follow in her father’s footsteps and enlisted in the United States Air Force after two years of college.

After bootcamp, Spoon learned to be an air traffic controller. “After spending five months at Keesler Air Force Base to learn how to be an air traffic controller, I met my future husband as he was also in school to become a radar maintenance technician,” she shared. “His job was pretty much to fix everything that I broke as an air traffic controller. Amazingly enough, we were blessed to find out that we both had gotten the same base for our first assignment! We were headed to Travis Air Force Base California. There, as a controller, I worked in the control tower handling C5’s and KC 10s.”

As it did for many, Spoon’s career and life changed on September 11^th, 2001. “I was sitting in the control tower when the news came on advising everyone about a plane that had struck the first of the two Trade Centers,” she recalled. “Never in my wildest dreams did I think it was a terrorist attack when – lo and behold – I watched the second plane hit the other Trade Center. My fellow controllers and I sat in stunned silence as the printer in the tower started rattling off non-stop. The flight data input output machine or FD IO started printing up several flight strips with notices from the FAA saying that all air traffic was immediately suspended. The next 72 hours would be life altering. And ultimately, I found myself on a C-5 heading to the Middle East for the next 8 months. After returning, my husband followed suit by deploying for six months as well. So – it’s safe to say that we spent much of our first few years of marriage apart. After we both returned from our deployments, we definitely had a greater appreciation for the rights and liberties we have here in the United States. We also both knew that we are ready for something more.”

With a lot of hard work and support from her husband and now growing family, Spoon applied for a commissioning program to become an officer – just like her father had done when he was in the Air Force.

After serving just shy of 23 years, Spoon made the decision to retire from the military. “During my retirement speech, I found myself looking back on many of my career highlights and while I have several proud moments, the ones that tended to stand out were those that involved my family. The fact that I was able to reenlist my husband with my sons present, reenlist my brother, enlist my little sister, and make countless friends meet amazing leaders and mentors. I only hope I had inspired others the way I was inspired during my journey in the Air Force.”

On behalf of the entire Great Hearts community, we extend our deepest gratitude to all who have served. Your courage in defense of our country and your continued commitment to forming young hearts and minds inspire us daily. Thank you for living out the virtues that make both a great citizen and a great educator.

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