When Jim Shackelford thinks of Monica Beaudoin, he said, what stands out is the way she cared for teachers, staff and students in schools.

Shackelford, who was the Idaho Education Association executive director during Beaudoin’s term as president for the IEA, said the longtime educator from Sandpoint was “formidable” in her work for teachers and students, but also had a soft side and would often be seen tearing up over students’ growth.

She showed dedication to representing constituents, Shackelford said, and that dedication garnered respect.

“She had this ability to bring … their voice to whatever conversation was being held,” he said. “People who met with her and heard her voice listened to her, because they quickly realized she was an authentic spokesperson.”

Beaudoin, who passed away on Oct. 31, was most well-known in the IEA for her work creating the Children’s Fund, which helps provide basic needs for some of the state’s most underprivileged children.

Over the years the fund has helped provide students with glasses, food, wheelchairs, new shoes and more, Shackelford said. The money primarily comes from teacher fundraising, and the program distributes around $3,700 per month and has provided over 5,000 grants since its inception.

“[She believed] that if a child is well-fed and healthy, they are better prepared to learn,” he said.

That fund, said Cindy Wilson, a retired educator, was started after Beaudoin helped her and another IEA member from Orofino.

Wilson had first met Beaudoin as the local chapter president for Orofino, Wilson said.

“I remember being so in awe of her,” she said, “and yet she was just really down to earth.”

On February 9, 1996, a flood destroyed Wilson’s home in Orofino.

“We lost everything, and I had two little kids, 1 and 2 [years old], and a 12-year-old,” Wilson said.

The following month at am IEA delegate assembly, Beaudoin stepped up.

“She suggested the group pass a hat to collect money for us,” Wilson said. “We ended up with over $3,000."

That random act of kindness turned into what would later become the Children’s Fund, Wilson said. Over the years Wilson would use the fund numerous times as a teacher to help her students in critical need.

Teachers would call the IEA head office and request funds for any number of needs a student might have. The process was fast, and allowed teachers to provide for urgent needs like glasses or a coat without having to wait for paperwork to be processed.

“You would get a check in the mail, no more questions asked,” Wilson said. “If I had a student that needed help, and they needed it right away — I felt as a teacher that my expertise was respected.”

Brian Smith, a teacher at Sandpoint High School, described Beaudoin as passionate, bold and forthright in advocating for what she believed in.

“She spoke her mind and stood up for what she believed in and her advocacy made a difference,” Smith wrote in an email to the Bee. “Both the children and the educators in Idaho are better off today because of the work Monica did.”

On a personal level, Beaudoin impacted the lives of her students, Smith said, but she also fought to improve education in Idaho even after retiring.

“She will be deeply missed and in her passing, we have lost a true champion in the field of education,” Smith wrote.

Robin Nettinga, former executive director and president of the IEA, first met Beaudoin early in her career.

“She saw something in me that I didn’t see,” Nettinga said.

Beaudoin served as a mentor for Nettinga, who eventually served as IEA executive director and president, following in Beaudoin’s footsteps. Beaudoin had a pivotal role in her life as a mentor, Nettinga said, but also as a friend.

“She came across as hard on the outside, but she was soft as a marshmallow on the inside,” she said.

Outside of her work and involvement with the IEA, Monica loved baseball and traveling, Nettinga said. In retirement, she and her husband Ken liked to travel, and on one of Nettinga and Beaudoin’s first trips together for the IEA, they traveled hours to see a Chicago Cubs doubleheader.

“If there was a game and she could get a ticket, she was going,” Nettinga said.

Above all else, Shackelford said, Beaudoin’s commitment to the students and teachers she served earned her widespread admiration and served as an example to others.

“That’s the greatest thing I learned from her,” he said. “Whatever she accomplished was undergirded by the people in those schools.”