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Struthers teacher lives on through family's donation
By EMMALEE C. TORISK
STRUTHERS
Three days before she died, Linda S. Klacik told her husband something he didn’t think much of at the time.
It was a Friday night, and the couple was attending a Struthers-Poland football game. The huge inflatable tunnel that the Poland Bulldogs ran through before play caught her eye.
“Linda looked at me and said, ‘Wow. I think that’s really classy, really nice,’” recalled Michael Klacik, her husband of 31 years. “She said, ‘It would be nice if Struthers got something like that.’”
On the following Monday, Oct. 7, Linda suffered a massive heart attack. She was just 52 years old and had been on the job as a full-time third-grade teacher — her dream job — for barely six weeks.
Her comment to Michael didn’t sink in until months later.
“It was an omen that she mentioned it to me,” he said.
Michael called up Joseph Nohra, superintendent of Struthers City Schools, and told him he wanted to donate a similar inflatable tunnel to the school district in Linda’s memory, regardless of cost.
At the Aug. 28 home game against Campbell Memorial High School, the approximately $5,000 tunnel will make its debut.
The final design has a red and black wildcat at the forefront, while the tunnel itself reads “Struthers” on one side and “Wildcats” on the other. Both sides say “In Memory of Linda S. Klacik.”
“I will have a warm place in my heart forever when the team comes up,” Michael said.
That first home game also will include a dedication of the tunnel, and members of the Klacik family will be present. When Linda died, she left a son, Michael D. Klacik Jr.; three daughters, Brittany, Kaitlyn and Kayla Klacik; a granddaughter, Bella Johnson; and a grandson, Kayce Cossack. All four children have gone through the Struthers school system.
Elementary-school students will be involved in the dedication ceremony and during the tunnel’s other uses, as well, since working with them was Linda’s true love in life.
The tunnel will be used at all home football games, along with other outdoor and indoor events, noted Nancy Knight, athletic director.
“It’s going to be used on a regular basis,” Knight said. “Her name’s going to be out there for a long time.”
Nohra added that the tunnel also will do more than keep Linda’s memory alive.
“She fought so hard to get that teaching job, and in a way, she continues to teach,” he said. “That tunnel will teach pride, teach kids to get excited about learning. Linda’s legacy continues.”
Linda began her teaching career at Youngstown City Schools, then worked at the former Byzantine Catholic Central School. She had worked for Struthers City Schools as an intervention tutor for almost three years, before being hired as a full-time teacher at Struthers Elementary School.
Michael noted that he has also set up a foundation in Linda’s name at the elementary school. A $1,000 annual donation can be used in whatever way school administrators see fit, he said, such as to purchase books or other supplies.
“She was a fantastic wife, a fantastic mother and a fantastic teacher,” Michael said. “She’s in my heart every single day of my life. I lost my girl, but her memory will live on as long as I’m living.”