Below were the remarks delivered by Mexico Board of Education President James Emery as the Board of Education honored Mrs. Maria Loomis as the district’s Proud to be MACS honoree for March 2026 at the March Board of Education Business meeting.

Some of you may know that I am a big Bruce Springsteen fan. One of his songs is entitled “Tougher than the Rest.” Though the lyrics of the song may not be pertinent, I think the title is an accurate description of tonight’s Proud to be MACS recipient as she had to be “tougher than the rest” by coming from a foreign country, dealing with our not-so-tropical weather, learning new customs and a new language, raising a family, and working for the MACS District in a variety of positions at a variety of buildings. I am referring to Maria Loomis from our Operations and Maintenance Department, our Proud to be MACS recipient for March 2026.

Maria grew up in the City of Belem, State of Para, Country of Brazil. Her home is located in the Northeast portion of Brazil near the Amazon River and the Atlantic Ocean.

After completing high school, Maria attended technical school where she studied nursing until she met her first husband, Bill Seaburger. Bill was in Brazil because of work. The couple would marry in Brazil and remain there for a few years after Bill retired.

Maria and Bill would be blessed with a daughter, Alissia. After a visit to Bill’s family in the United States around 2001, Maria and Bill decided to remain in this country because of the educational opportunities it offered their daughter. The family would move to Gibbs Road just outside the Village of Mexico. Alissia would graduate from MACS in 2017 and attend SUNY at Brockport.

In 2008, Maria took some English classes in order to make herself marketable. Around that time, Maria began subbing for MACS at Palermo Elementary School as a cafeteria monitor before moving to the kitchen as a Food Service staff member for past Food Service Director, Morgan Wisner.

Sadly, in 2010, Bill passed away.

In 2014, Maria took a part time cleaner position at New Haven Elementary School.

2017 was a momentous year for Maria. That year, she married Frank Loomis. They reside on Albright Road in the Town of New Haven with Maria’s step-daughter, Frankie.

2017 was also the last year that Maria visited Brazil.

Finally, around 2017, Maria became a full time cleaner at the Mexico Middle School.

Continuing her timeline with the District, in 2024, Maria became the Custodian on nights at the Middle School until 2025 when she moved to days at the Middle School.

So far, from the aforementioned highlights, you can see that life has presented its share of challenges for Maria, but, through it all, Maria maintains a great attitude and high standards. These characteristics are affirmed by her peers, supervisor, and even Superintendent.

Nominator and former Proud to be MACS recipient Sue Hewitt writes, “Maria is with O&M and I see her working very hard every day to keep the Middle School clean. She is always busy.”

Sue continues by writing, “Maria is very diligent in keeping the halls clean and everything sparkling. Maria is very helpful and is a great asset to the school and O&M.”

Mexico Middle School Head Custodian, Stephanie Parkhurst adds, “Maria is a dedicated and hardworking individual who consistently gives 100%. She is self-motivated, dependable, and a tremendous asset to the district. Her friendly personality makes her a pleasure to work with, and I’m grateful to have her as part of my team.”

Director of O&M, Mike Wood writes, “I’d like to add that Maria has always been a hardworking, detail-oriented employee. Her good work ethic and willingness to learn new things has brought her up through the ranks from a part time cleaner to a custodial worker. Additionally, she always has a positive and friendly attitude. She is deserving of this award and we are fortunate to have her.”

I asked Maria where she gets her happy attitude. She believes it was from her parents, who taught her to treat others as she would want to be treated.

I also asked Maria what is the favorite part of her job. She responded that she has always enjoyed working for the District, especially at the Middle School and working with Stephanie Parkhurst.

Maria also enjoys the staff and students. In fact, the staff has given her several compliments for her efforts, which makes her very happy.

Overall, she has always tried to get along with everyone and has always enjoyed each position in each building.

Finally, I asked her for her favorite memory.  She mentioned two.

One was when she was in Food Service and she was asked to cook at Palermo. She admitted to being very nervous about the responsibility associated with that position. As it was, she received many compliments and, like the compliments received for her cleaning, these cooking compliments made her very happy.

Her other memory involved retired Head Custodian at New Haven Elementary School, Bruce Thompson. Apparently, in addition to being a hard worker, Maria also likes to have fun. One shift, there was a box that needed moving. Maria claimed that it was far too heavy for her to move and asked Bruce for assistance. Bruce came to her rescue, prepared himself to lift the heavy load, took a deep breath then lifted the box. Too his amazement, the box was as light as a feather. Maria had pulled one over on him. They both had a good laugh!

Returning to Sue Hewitt’s nomination, Sue writes, “She is always willing to point people and students in the right direction when asked. She always comes to work with a smile on her face and ready to go!!

Sue’s observations are echoed by Superintendent Donna Runner who writes, “Maria exemplifies what it means to be Proud to be MACS. Her dedication, trustworthiness, and consistent commitment to performing her duties with fidelity make a meaningful difference each day. I deeply appreciate her responsiveness, her willingness to support colleagues, and her readiness to assist anyone in need. Maria is a valued and respected member of our school community, and we are grateful for the positive impact she has on the Mexico Academy and Central School District.”

And so Maria, for deciding to come to this country to raise your daughter, for adjusting to a new culture and language, for working for the District in a variety of positions at a variety of buildings, for always bringing your work ethic, positive and friendly attitude, and your attention to detail to whatever position or building you worked in, for keeping your current building (the Mexico Middle School) sparkling, for being self-motivated, dependable, and a tremendous asset to the District, for your consistent commitment to performing your duties with fidelity that make a meaningful difference every day, but, most importantly, in my mind, for being the perfect example of the Bruce Springsteen title “tougher than the rest”, it is with great admiration and appreciation that we, the Board, recognize you as our Proud to be MACS recipient for March 2026.