The Call

Stories of lifelong Adventist educators who go the extra mile.

• "The Boys" - Even after decades of teaching, Denine Matsuda was  terrified by what she saw headed for her classroom. She shares her fight for survival. (8 minutes)
• "The Call" - When Aren was 12 he was sent to a strange new school. The night before his first day, something happened that altered that experience, and possibly the rest of his life. He now searches for answers as an adult. (20 minutes)

To learn more, including guest profiles and episode transcripts, visit our website adventiststories.buzzsprout.com, or follow us on Instagram @AdventistStories. Thank you to Blue Dot Sessions, Stellwagon Symphonette, the Pacific Union Conference, and Growing Young Leaders. Please subscribe to our show and leave a rating and review to help us reach more people. We appreciate your support.

Transcript

“The Boys”

Mrs. Matsuda is a lifelong Adventist school teacher.

Mrs. Matsuda My name is Denine Matsuda and I started teaching in 1986. I was 22 years old.

Aren So how many years would that be?

Mrs. Matsuda Wow. So like 86 to 96…40 years. That's four decades. 

The reason for her surprise, it’s not because it’s been so long. It’s because it’s felt so short. Mrs. Matsuda loves teaching, as much now as she did at the start. I know this because she’s my Mother-In-Law.

Mrs. Matsuda Thank you for talking with me. Thank you for listening to so many of my stories. 

Aren I love your stories. So I appreciate you sharing them.

After so many years, she’s basically seen everything. And yet, just a few years ago, when she was teaching sixth grade, something happened that not only caught her off guard…it scared her.

Mrs. Matsuda I was watching this class for about three years. I started noticing this class when they were in the third grade.

Aren And how would you describe them?

Mrs. Matsuda Well, a lot of testosterone. They were so competitive and they, they were not outside laughing at recess. Every recess game I saw was serious business. Like we're gonna win. 

Aren And what were you thinking?

Mrs. Matsuda Oh my.

Mrs. Matsuda Because they were third graders and they were doing things like bringing, um, gloves, like football gloves to recess. I didn't even know what football gloves were.

Aren Would you call yourself an athlete, Mrs. Matsuda?

Mrs. Matsuda No. I was that girl who was always picked last. Unless a boy liked me and then I was picked really early. 

Aren: [LAUGHS] Sports is not your thing.

Mrs. Matsuda No, I wish it were. I would love to be that person, but I’m–you know, elliptical is my sport.

On top of that, she didn’t grow up with brothers. She only had daughters. She calls her boy experience “Weak at best.” Which is what made this class so intimidating.

Mrs. Matsuda I remember seeing all this and thinking, “How am I gonna survive these boys?” And there were so many of them. It wasn't like a couple, it was a pack.

Aren And so you were thinking…

Mrs. Matsuda I'm not ready.

Before she knows it, they’re graduating fifth grade. All that stands between her and the class she’d been dreading for three years, is one summer break.

Mrs. Matsuda So I knew I needed to, uh, like, what's it called? Summer training, spring training for the Dodgers? I was in summer training. And so I thought there has to be a book on this topic.

Aren On what topic?

Mrs. Matsuda Boys. Teaching boys. 

She looks online and finds this book from 2010 called Reaching Boys, Teaching Boys. It’s written by doctors Michael Reichert and Richard Hawley, and talks about how many of the traditional concepts of student learning don’t serve boys today. Like the idea that sitting still is good, and fidgeting is bad. Or that games should only be played on special occasions. And she reads all of it, cover to cover.

Then she reads another book. This one talks about a teacher with such active students she put a stationary bike in her classroom.  So, Mrs. Matsuda calls her principal. He says no. Then she asks for a treadmill. Also, no.

With only a few days left before school, she crams one last lesson plan into her studies.

Mrs. Matsuda I tried to learn cool, cool phrases.

Aren Like what?

Mrs. Matsuda Like “GOAT.” I'd never heard of that before. “The GOAT.” 

Aren And what does that mean? 

Mrs. Matsuda That means the “greatest of all time.” 

Aren It does. Yeah. 

Mrs. Matsuda And um, I wanted to kind of know their sports slightly. You know, be able to know what a touchdown is, and, you know, just the basic vocabulary I tried to prepare myself.

Aren What is a touchdown?

Mrs. Matsuda Um, that's a score, but I think it's seven points, but I think it can also be 10 points or nine points. It's confusing.

Aren It is, yeah.

Mrs. Matsuda It's very confusing.

Aren Did the book talk at all about, uh, competitiveness and, uh, you know, being sore losers or anything like that?

Mrs. Matsuda I’m sure it did, but you were my, you were my resource for that.

Aren For being a sore loser?

[LAUGHTER]

Aren Yeah, I, I was glad to help you. I'm an expert. 

The school year begins. And during the first week, it’s Back to School Night. A meet and greet between the families and their new teacher. Everything’s going well, but then the parents of one of these boys walk up to Mrs. Matsuda. She knows who they are: Mom is the president of the Home and School Association. Dad is on the school board. They’re big time. And she doesn’t know what’s coming. And then Dad says,

Mrs. Matsuda “We just want you to know that whatever you do to our son during the day, we will be doubling it at night. If he gets in any trouble, whatever consequence he gets from you, we'll double it.”

Aren How did you feel when the parent told you that?

Mrs. Matsuda Oh my goodness. I couldn’t believe it. I’ve never had someone tell me that. 

Mrs. Matsuda We started the year and they were exactly how I imagined them. Super active. Super–one boy, this boy would stand up at his desk and just bounce up and down. He would just jump like running in place or jumping at his desk. 

Sounds like that kid could use a treadmill.

Mrs. Matsuda I loved them. I loved this class so much, but I just knew that every day would feel like Friday. 

One day, she looks up and sees one of her students picking on another, more timid classmate. This wasn’t the first time.

Mrs. Matsuda And I don't know how to describe it. He like pushed his chest out and like, “Uhhh!” Like, what's the, do you get a motion when you hear me do that? It's like the arms are up like a, like a, 

Aren You look like you're kind of like sneezing, but also signifying a touchdown.

Mrs. Matsuda Like touchdown, yeah. And I don't know what message he meant to give. 

Aren Neither do I.

Mrs. Matsuda But the message I got was. I am something important. 

This wasn’t the first time she’d seen this from him, and so in that moment she makes a decision. He will not be allowed to play in the school football game that night. Which, she wasn’t sure if she could do, but…

Mrs. Matsuda I’ve had it. I’ve had it. You have not learned the lesson of love yet.

The problem is he’s one of the team’s best players. But she speaks with the coach, gets their full support.

The other problem? His parents are kind of important. The same parents from Back to School Night. So, she calls them.

Denine I said, your son did this to his classmate. I said, I don't want him to play the game. And the mom without questioning me, “All right, Mrs. Matsuda, you have our support.” She didn't say I need to talk to my husband. Um, you know, you, you don't always get that level of support from parents, but I did. They promised it on the first day of school. 

Aren Yeah. Well, technically what they promised is they'd make a miss the next game too. 

Mrs. Matsuda [LAUGHS] So I thought they weren't gonna let him go to the game, but she said, “No. He's gonna go to the game and he's gonna wear the uniform and everyone's going to know that he's not playing the game.” 

The next morning, he and his mother come with a bouquet of flowers and homemade banana bread to say thank you.

Mrs. Matsuda made it through the year, swears she loved the class despite the challenges–and that they loved her too. In fact, just last year, she went to watch them play in their academy football tournament as high school seniors.

Mrs. Matsuda And these boys just all surrounded me. I have a picture on my phone of me with my men. My men. And would you believe they won? They won the tournament and um, they're going to be great men. They already are.

Mrs. Denine Matsuda is currently a 4th grade teacher at an Adventist school in Southern California. And a pretty great mother-in-law.

Well today on the show, we hear another story of a lifelong teacher, one who also gave 40 years to Adventist education. But this one, requires a little more effort on my part–in more ways than one.

Stay with us.

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“The Call”

Welcome back to Adventist Stories, Episode 2, “The Call.” Here it is.

One day when I was 12 years old, my mother sat me down to give me some bad news. I was her youngest, a good kid who didn’t need much more than a ball and a hoop to be happy. But now, she had to give it to me straight.

“You’re going to a new school next year,” she told me. “A new, Christian school.” 

This wasn’t a complete shock. I was about to finish my final year at our local elementary school, a place I loved. Unfortunately, it stopped at sixth grade. I knew I’d be going somewhere else for junior high—but going to a rich, religious school full of rich, religious kids…was not what I wanted to hear.

Because we weren’t either of those things. My dad was an alcoholic, so my mother raised the four of us on her own. She took odd jobs as necessary, but money was always tight. The idea that I’d now be attending a private school didn’t make sense. Who would be paying the bill? 

We also weren’t a pious family. My grandmother was Presbyterian, but as often happens with strict religious parents, her daughter didn’t impose the same on her kids. Our house was noisy. We loved football and rock music. We were well behaved, but we liked to have fun.

Now I was being told I’d be going to church school. A “Seven day Adventist” school, as she called it. I didn’t know what any of those words meant. Neither did she. Even so, I would be going from a place I loved, to one I knew nothing about—except that it’d be full of kids who grew up together and went to church together and probably chanted the Bible in their free time–and me.

By the end of summer, I had accepted my fate. I was still terrified, but now with new clothes. The night before my first day, [fade] our phone rang. I answered it.

“Is this Aren?” the voice said.

“Yes,” I replied.

“Hi, Aren. This is Mr. Ritterskamp. You can call me Mr. R. I’m going to be one of your new teachers tomorrow!”

“Um…hello.”

 Mr. R called to let me know which math level I had tested into. He also explained how to find his classroom, walked me through my schedule, and welcomed me to the school. I don’t think I said much in return, but by the time I hung up…I had made a new friend.

The next few weeks went as you would expect—a mix of fear, anxiety, and big franks. Through it all, I had Mr. R. He was kind and funny, and somehow able to make math and science fun for 7th graders. I quickly began to doubt if there was anything Mr. R didn’t know. Any problem or equation he couldn’t figure out.

He also taught physical education, and so each day, as a man in his 60’s, he would change out of his teaching clothes and into our gym class outfit. He would then lead us in a game of mat-ball, a kickball variant that, as far as I knew, he invented. It became my favorite 30 minutes of every day.

Looking back, I now realize my first image of Jesus wasn’t someone in a suit and tie…they were in a P.E. uniform.

But the best thing about Mr. R was how he made faith real. He would openly speak with us about his good days with God, and hard days with God. No, it wasn’t perfect. Yes, adults can struggle with faith too, that’s what makes it real. One time he told us that when he was younger and he got a bill in the mail he couldn’t pay, he’d stick it on the counter and say, “Well God, this one’s on you.” And sometimes that bill would miraculously get paid. Other times, it wouldn’t. But all the time, he knew he had a friend in Jesus. And because of Mr. R, I knew I had one too. 

Eventually, I became more comfortable at school. I made friends, started academy, and got baptized. My senior year I served on the student body as religious vice president, and enrolled at Pacific Union College. Like before, I wasn’t totally sure how we’d pay for it, but I put the bill on the counter and trusted God to cover it.

When the day came for me to leave for school, Mr. R invited me to stop by his home on the way out. There he led me to his garage, where he presented me with a like-new fridge that I could take to my college dorm room. It was a big expense I wouldn’t have to pay. As I drove away, I started to wonder if there were other times Mr. R had helped me afford the costs of my education. I used that fridge all four years of college.

To this day, I still think of Mr. R and the effect he had on me. I wonder if he’s still teaching. I wonder if he loved it as much as it seemed. I wonder if he invented mat-ball. And I wonder if he knows the impact he had on me and so many others.

If only there was a way to find him. 

[PHONE RING]

Receptionist …Adventist Academy, this is Jenny, how can I help you?

Aren Hi, my name is Aren, I’m an alum of the school and I’m trying to get in contact…

I find the number for the academy and decide to give it a shot. Of course, calling up a school and expecting them to just give you the phone number of an employee isn’t much of a plan. But maybe Jenny could come up with a better one?

Jenny Um, so let me do this. I’m going to write down your information and I will reach out to Ron and then if I pass your contact information onto him, is that okay?

Aren Yeah, yeah. Absolutely. That would be great.

Jenny Okay. I will pass this along to him and just let him know that we talked and you’re trying to get ahold of him.

Aren Thank you, I really appreciate it…

Jenny was gracious and helpful, but I still have my doubts. Close to 20 years have passed since that day I left for college. I’m sure Mr. R has better things to do than return a call from a name he may or may not recognize.

As I wait, I decide to keep digging. I search Mr. R’s name in Google and get nothing, not even a photo. I look him up on Facebook and Instagram with no results. I even scour the school’s social media pages for something–a teacher highlight, a retirement post–to no avail.

Just when I’m starting to wonder if Mr. R really exists…an idea hits me. Back when I was in eighth grade, I started a fantasy football league with a few friends and teachers. 23 years later, we’re still playing. One of those former teachers in the league is married to another teacher who still works at the school. I text my league mate and ask for his wife’s number…he sends it immediately. There truly is no bond like fantasy football.

Aren Hello!

Mrs. Rasmusson Hey! 

Aren How are you? 

Mrs. Rasmusson Good.

Aren It’s really good to talk to you… 

Tonja Rasmusson was my academy Bible and English teacher. I loved her classes. It’s now been years since we’ve spoken, so while I may have called to see if she could help me track down Mr. R, I find myself eager for the chance to reconnect with her.

Aren …I remember you would have us diagram sentences on whiteboards. Which is hard for high school students.

Mrs. Rasmusson Yeah. For sure, for sure.

Aren And kind of intimidating. But somehow you made it fun. I’ll always remember that.

Mrs. Rasmusson Aw, that’s so sweet. I remember diagramming on those whiteboards. So [LAUGHS]

Another moment that meant even more than diagramming sentences came when she assigned a big paper for Bible class. I put a lot of work and late nights into it. When the day came to receive our grades, she chose to read my paper in front of the class. She said it made her proud. I had never felt so affirmed as a student.

Mrs. Rasmusson In teaching, there's things where you're pouring into other people. And I can only do that because God has poured into me. 

Mrs. Rasmusson grew up in Nebraska. She was often at the top of her class, but when college arrived, she wasn’t sure what to study. When a mentor suggested she’d make a great teacher, she had reservations.

Mrs. Rasmusson I didn't wanna be a teacher just because I had this desire, this sounds awful, but this desire to be, to appear to be more in the world. Right?

A lot of times it's like, oh, well you teach because you can't actually make it in other things. And I–

Aren That’s what they say right, “Those who can’t, teach.” That stupid saying.

Mrs. Rasmusson Yeah. And…I knew it wasn't true, but I also wanted some prestige in my life, and being a teacher was like…you know, I, I wanted to be important, right? And yet, everywhere I was going, God was leading me more towards serving and really connecting with young people and enjoying it.

Aren So let me ask you: all these years later, that fear of not doing something more prestigious than teaching? Do you still feel that way? 

Mrs. Rasmusson Not at all. You know what's so funny? God is so, I'm gonna cry, man. God is so, so beautiful, right? Because he knew who I was on the inside, right? Who I desired to be. And I am so grateful to him that I did not have that thing…that the people in my life steered me and people praying for me right behind the scenes that I don't even know. I'm so happy I'm a teacher. And God has humbled me in a way where it was like, I can't imagine doing anything else. …I can't believe the life that I live.

Before hanging up, I remember why I called in the first place. I ask her about Mr. R. She tells me he is retired, but still comes by the school at times to substitute or pick up his grandkids, who are now students.

Mrs. Rasmusson One thing that I can say about Ron is that he has just this love for humanity and the, and doing the right thing. You know, we had, after he'd been outta retirement, we had a, a situation where a teacher, we had to let a teacher go. He stepped in, he stepped in for my daughter's own class and, and, and took over. And the first thing he did is he went and bought Bibles for all of them. And he's like, “I have to teach them Bible, because that's where you develop the connection with them, and that's where they'll learn math, because I'll have a connection with them in Bible.” And I'm like, you get it. He just gets it. Right. He understands that if you're gonna be a teacher, you have to have some kind of connection with these kids.

Aren You don't have his uh, number, do you?

Mrs. Rasmusson Yeah, I do. ...I'll share it with you. 

Aren That would be amazing. Thank you so much. And thank you for your time today, it’s really good to talk with you again.

Mrs. Rasmusson Same. Same. And I look forward to the video that you're gonna put together for your fantasy football right–

I have no idea what fantasy football video thing she’s referring to the important thing is just a few minutes later, she sent me a phone number. And while I thought it was just what I needed…it turns out, I was wrong.

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Shortly after finishing my call with Mrs. Rasmusson, I step away from my phone to grab some ginger snaps...mm…and when I return, I see a notification waiting for me.

Phone “You have one new message”

Mr. R “Oh too bad, the message said Aren Rennacker was not available. Oh well, Mr. R will call him some other time. …I’m up till 11:30 usually or 12 so if you want to call back that’s cool. Bye.”

He still sounds the same.

[PHONE RING]

Mr. R Hello.

Aren Hi, Mr. R?

Mr. R Hey, how ya doing, Mr. R? [LAUGHS]

Aren How are you doing? I hope it’s an okay time for us to chat…

This is Ron Ritterskamp. Age 76. He spent 40 years in the classroom, most of them teaching 5-8th grade, but also a few in high school, and one year teaching kindergarten. He also spent five years writing the official science textbooks for the church. If you attended an academy in North America in the last thirty years, you probably used his books.

I’m so excited to be talking with Mr. R again, I don’t really know where to start. So we talk about his upbringing.

Mr. R I was born in Florida in 49, 1949…

How he became an Adventist in his 20’s.

Mr. R Stopped eating pork, stopped going to certain movies…

How he met his wife.

Mr. R She says, what’s the story with this guy? And they all went roller skating one Friday night and I wouldn’t go. So she goes roller skating and breaks her ankle [LAUGHS]…

How he became a teacher…

Mr. R One day I’m planning on going to vet school, and then suddenly I felt called to teach.

And why he loves middle school.

Mr. R All you have to do is be as crazy as them and two steps ahead.

As we talk, I notice a few things. Like how matter of fact he can be. Or how he has a habit of chuckling to end his sentences, almost just to fill the space or cut the tension. I notice that one…because I often do the same thing. 

But what surprises me the most is when he shares about his childhood. Particularly, his parents’ divorce.

Mr. R My mom and dad didn't always see eye to eye on stuff. And so my mom just quote, “went on vacation” and stayed away. And my dad said, when she says she's about ready to come back, my dad says, nah, don't bother. It was on a Friday night and she left for Charlotte. And she just stayed there for a while. You don't choose your parents. [LAUGHS]

All this time, I’ve thought of how Mr. R stepped in to help somebody like me, the anxious product of a broken home. I never thought to imagine that once upon a time, he was one too.

I decide to share with him some of the memories I still hold. And some of the questions that come with them.

Aren The night before my first day at this new Christian school that I knew nothing about Um, I get a phone call and it was from you and you were basically telling me which math level I think I had tested into. But you really kind of introduced yourself. You offered yourself as a resource to me if I didn't know where anything was. And it just kind of made me feel maybe I can do this. Was that a habit you would have as the night before, the first day of school you would call new students or?

Mr. R: That's a good, good question. The answer is in general, no. [LAUGHS] It was kind of like, I don't know why I contacted you specifically. I can't honestly tell you the answer why. Except I, I guess I just felt I needed to do this. I, I don't know the answer to that question honestly.

Aren Do you think you knew my situation of a single mom who didn't have much money and–

Mr. R: Yep, yep. Studying physics at Sac State or something, wasn't she?

Aren: Yeah. Yeah. I think so. 

Mr. R I still remember your mom's name. She's Patricia, right?

Aren That's right.

Mr. R: I did know that much of your background, you know, there were four kids and it, it, there were times that finances were rather tight.

Aren: Yeah. They were. Yep. Mm-hmm. I always have, I always wondered who paid those tuition bills. [LAUGHS] I think the school really helped us out. 

Aren You know, when I graduated from high school, you actually gave me a fridge for my dormitory. You invited me to come by your house, and you said, “Hey, you can take this and it, and it saved me an expense. I, I wouldn't, you know, I would've otherwise had to come up with, and I used that fridge in my college dorm all four years. 

Mr. R Oh cool. Did you pass it on and take it with you? 

Aren I'm pretty sure I, I passed it on. Yeah. It's probably still in a dorm room today.

Mr. R Leaking like crazy. [LAUGHS] I, you know, I can be honest and tell you, I don't remember giving you a fridge, but you know what? I'm glad I did. 

Aren Um, did you invent mat-ball? 

Mr. R Did I invent mat-ball? 

I honestly, I've been asked this before, “Did you invent mat-ball?” I may have, or collectively with one or two other teachers, I don’t know. Um, if I didn't invent it, I sure promoted it. [LAUGHS]

Aren Yeah. As a middle schooler, there was no feeling like we're about to play mat ball with Mr. R. It was the best. 

Mr. R I enjoyed it. And if I killed you once or twice. I'm sorry. [LAUGHS]

Aren More than twice.

Mr. R [LAUGHS]

Aren Where do you think your heart for young people comes from? 

Mr. R Excellent question. Um, I had excellent teachers all the way through. 

So probably because I had good experience in school, school was cool.

Mr. R shares with me about some of the teachers he still remembers. Including his first male teachers–who just so happened to teach middle school science and math.

Mr. R It just somewhere along the way it clicked. It just seemed like doing kid stuff was cool.

Aren Do you have any idea how many students you’ve taught?

Mr. R: I probably had, I tried to figure it out once. So, I don't know, probably well over 2000. It's hard to say. I, I could never, never really count 'em all, probably. 

After so many years, I may have found the one math problem Mr. R can’t solve.

As the hour gets late, I decide to raise my hand and ask one final question. One that isn’t very mathematical or scientific.

Aren When you lay your head down at night and think about your teaching career, what comes to mind for you?

Mr. R Oh, my, that's a philosophical question. I don't usually lay down my head and think about my teaching career, not now. If I was, if I was teaching, I'd be laying down my head thinking, what am I doing tomorrow?

Aren So you don't ever reflect it sounds like. 

Mr. R: I, I do, I do, but not every night when I'm laying down, usually I'm laying down. It's already 11:30 or 12:30 at night. I go, right. I go right to sleep. 

Aren Well, how about this: When an old student randomly asks you to think about your teaching career like, what comes to mind? What feelings come up for you? 

Mr. R Oh, my, I enjoyed it. I really enjoyed it. I, there were some days that were really hard, but it's fun. I just enjoyed doing what I was doing. I really did. And I, people say, oh, thank you so much. I said, I just was doing what I was supposed to be doing.

Aren Mr. R thank you so much for the teacher that you were in my life and, and how you welcomed me into Adventist education, which I know you did for so many other students. And thank you for the, for the person you are and for letting me talk to you today. 

Mr. R Well, great. Great, great. If you wanna do any more, fine. If you don't fine. Anything you want to use, you're more than welcome to use, uh, named your unnamed. Doesn't matter to me. I'm not bothered about that at all. One way or the other. I don't need credit and I don't need, uh, affirmation. 

Mr. R We'll see you. Have a good evening, sir. 

Aren You too. Bye-bye. 

Mr. R Bye.

When I was 12 years old, I received the hard news that I’d be going to a new school. A short time later, I answered a phone call that made me realize that news might not be so bad after all. Since then, I’ve graduated from that school, gone to college, and enjoyed my career as a pastor–all because of that news. And now, 25 years after picking up the phone, I got to return the favor with a call of my own. And while Mr. R says he was only doing what he was supposed to, maybe I was too. Perhaps it’s just one final thing he’s taught me.

Episode Outro

[“River” by The Shoreline War]

Well Adventist Stories is a production of the Pacific Union Conference and Growing Young Leaders. It is hosted and edited by me, Aren Rennacker, with the support of many. Cover art designed by Taji Saleem. Music provided by Stellwagen Symphonette, Blue Dot Sessions, and The Shoreline War–this is their song, “River.” You can find more of their music on Spotify soon with the upcoming release of their new EP. We are definitely looking forward to that.

If you would like to hear more from Mrs. Matsuda, who we heard in the beginning of the show, she and her husband run a YouTube channel that offers teaching videos, particularly on how to grow student’s confidence in math. Check it out by searching “Matsuda Math.” 

To learn more about the show, visit our website, adventiststories.buzzsprout.com or follow us on Instagram, @AdventistStories. And if you enjoyed this episode, please follow or subscribe to the show on your favorite podcast app and leave a rating and review. That helps us out a lot.

Another big thanks to our Union president, Bradford Newton, and his support of this show. You know, I recently got to ask him what it’s like to be a Union president, especially with so many of Adventists needing his attention. And he gave me an honest response.

Mr. R All you have to do is be as crazy as them and two steps ahead.

Thank you all so much for listening. We will be back next week with a new episode, and we hope you join us then for more Adventist Stories.

End