Honoring Taylorville School District Retirees: Retiring after 16 years: Gay Wilhour
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TAYLORVILLE — After 16 years of teaching in the district, Gay Wilhour has decided to retire. Check out her story and find out how her teaching career found her.
Gay, front left, sits in her classroom during her retirement reception with her husband John Wilhour behind her. Kneeling next to her mother is Johannah Wilhour. Alyssa Michard stands in the middle with Gay’s daughter Madelene Wilhour next to her on the far right.
Submitted photo
Rachel LeBeane
Breeze-Courier Writer
TAYLORVILLE — There are some teachers that just touch lives throughout their whole career. One such educator, Gay Wilhour, has decided to retire after 16 years with the Taylorville School District. So how did a world traveler with ambitions for law end up becoming an English teacher in Taylorville?
Wilhour’s story begins when she moved from Fairfield, Illinois, to Taylorville when she was ten years old. Like most Taylorville residents, Wilhour attended the local schools. Unlike most people, she graduated early to pursue – not a teaching career, interestingly enough.
“I graduated a year early and started my career at ISU before switching to U of I in Champaign. I was not going to be a teacher,” Wilhours shared, going on to admit, “I was studying a pre-law curriculum with a poli-sci major and history and English minors. Long story short, I ended up studying in London through the U of I, and eventually ended up in Greece , on the island of Crete.”
Wilhour’s journey to foreign shores included the birth of her children. “I got married, had twins, moved back to the States, went back to school to get my teaching certification, got remarried, had another child, and started teaching in Pana,” She recalled, “I came to Taylorville High School in the fall of 2008.” Wilhour’s family includes her loving husband, John, her twin daughter’s Madeleine and Johanna, her son Sean, and her step-son Ryen. She also recently became a proud grandma to Jensen John in December of 2024.
So how does a woman who traveled to other countries and was a pursuing a career in pre-law end up becoming a teacher? To hear her tell it, education chose her and not the other way around.
“I did not pick education, education picked me,” Wilhour shared, going on to explain, “When I moved to Greece, there was very little I could do in the way of my career field. One of my only options was teaching English at a private school. That is how I got into education.”
When she returned to the United States, Wilhour decided to become a certified teacher. She already had her Bachelor’s Degree, so she was already half-way there. Once she was certified, she started her education career at Pana’s alternative school before moving to the Pana high school. It wasn’t until 2008 that Wilhour began teaching in Taylorville.
“I came to THS in the fall of 2008, and I have been teaching in the English department. ever since.” She stated.
Even though this career path fell upon her due to a series of life events, WIlhour does have people who inspired her to keep going and eventually become a teacher herself.
“Even though I did not have a teacher who inspired me to become a teacher, I have had many great teachers throughout the years,” Wilhour shared, naming the educators who impacted her personally, “I will never forget Mr. Bard, my junior high science teacher; Mrs. Spears, my junior high math teacher; Mrs. Mosely, my high school speech teacher; and both Mrs. Wilcox and Mrs. Barnes, my high school P.E. teachers. There are so many more to mention, but I’m sure this article would not have room for them all. Finally, I do want to say that my family was all about education, and on my dad’s side, my step-brother was a teacher, football coach, and then later a principal and superintendent – William Estes III – and my step-sister was a math professor in Florida. In our family, it was never a question of whether you were going to college; the only question was where.”
As someone who has travelled to foreign shores, Wilhour is used to facing adversity. She still struggled to adapt to one of the biggest challenges in education, though: The intense and often unreasonable expectations placed upon educators.
“One of the biggest challenges I’ve faced has been adapting to the ever-changing expectations placed on educators —from standardized testing to shifting curriculum standards and, more recently, navigating the world of technology in the classroom. Balancing these demands while still putting students first and maintaining a love for teaching has required constant flexibility and resilience,” She admitted sadly, “Seeing students grow and knowing I was a part of that was the saving grace that kept me grounded in education, because this has been the most challenging thing I’ve ever done. It can be exhausting, and my head was spinning at the end of most days. Any teacher who reads this knows exactly what I am talking about.”
The students were the biggest reward for Wilhour. Not just seeing them learn and grow, but knowing she had an impact on their lives that is remembered even years after they graduated.
“The greatest reward has been the relationships — watching students discover their voice, grow in confidence, and succeed in ways they never thought possible. It’s incredibly fulfilling to hear from former students who still remember something they learned or a moment we shared in class. Those lasting connections and the impact I’ve had on young lives are what made all the challenges worth it,” She declared, “It is so important that students tell the teachers who had a positive impact on their lives. Often, we never know if we made a difference in their lives; finding out that we did makes all the difference in ours.”
With a total of twenty-eight years of teaching under her belt, Wilhour has witnessed a lot of change throughout her career. Trying to keep up with is has been a challenge, as she willingly admits.
“Education has changed tremendously over the past 28 years. When I started teaching, technology was minimal —chalkboards, overhead projectors, and handwritten lesson plans were the norm,” Wilhour said, “Today, classrooms are digital, and students live in an information-rich, fast-paced world. Teaching has shifted from memorization and lecture to collaboration, critical thinking, and personalization. There’s more emphasis on mental health, equity, and adapting to individual student needs. While the core mission — helping students learn — remains, the tools and approaches have evolved significantly. It has been a challenge to keep up in this dynamic field.”
After so many years of juggling the needs of her students with the constantly shifting and changing methods of teaching, what will Wilhour do with her retirement? One might think she plans on resting, and while that is in the cards, she simply has too many ideas to remain idle for long.
“Retirement for me will be a mix of rest and exploration. I want to organize and simplify my home, reconnect with old friends, and make more time for hobbies I’ve long put on hold — like baking, cooking, and refinishing furniture. I also plan to play more pickleball, start walking and running again, and even learn to golf so my husband and I can enjoy that together,” She happily shared, “Most importantly, I’m looking forward to spending more quality time with my grandson, making memories, being present, and enjoying every moment. It was always difficult for me to truly be present with my family because I was always thinking about students and lesson plans, all the tasks I needed to complete, meetings I needed to attend, or grading papers.”
After becoming a teacher and devoting so many of her years to improving many young minds, Wilhour has earned all the happiness in the world through her retirement. Have a wonderful retirement and may you succeed in your many future plans and dreams!
