The entire Heatherwood community will bid a sorrowful good-bye to the outstanding principal of Heatherwood Elementary School. Lynn Widger boosted morale and became the "pal" to students, faculty, staff and parents. She will leave Heatherwood at the end of June to become principal at Columbine Elementary School in Boulder, where her knowledge and experience in bilingual education will be very welcome.

Widger came to Heatherwood three years ago from Washington Bilingual School in Boulder. A Colorado native, she grew up in the San Luis Valley and graduated from Adams State College. She has two grown daughters.

Before going into school administration, Widger taught at the elementary and junior high school levels. The love of bilingual education led her to become the Director of Literacy and Language for the Boulder Valley School District. She was also responsible for Title 1 and the Colorado Preschool programs.

Fifty percent of the students at Columbine consider English as a second language (ESL). Widger’s experience with ESL programs will be an asset to the school. Widger said, "Going to Columbine will be like starting over. I’ll have lots of  challenges. I need to meet the individuals, visit classrooms, get to know the kids and their parents."

She said Heatherwood "was a perfect fit. Everything seemed to jive, the staff, the kids, the parents, the job. It’s a very bittersweet choice to make. "

Widger will spend the summer painting her "fixer-upper" house , and she’ll help plan a 50th wedding anniversary for her parents. She believes that those activities, along with cleaning and moving her office, will keep her busy.

School volunteer and Heatherwood parent Paula Earl sums it up. "Lynn Widger is exactly what the school needed at a very difficult time. She has done a wonderful job and we’ll all miss her."