Born in the east Texas town of Ennis, Virginia Basarich attended elementary school where the teachers were white and every student was Black.
It was only in fifth grade that she attended a school that was fully integrated.
"Times were different back then," Basarich, now 65, remembered.
Raised in a family with seven other siblings, she knew that education would be the key to her future.
Sure enough, Basarich would enjoyed a 34-year career with the Sioux City Community School District. She spent the majority of her time -- 22 years -- as a fourth-and-fifth grade teacher at the former Emerson Elementary School.
Retiring in 2018, Basarich ended her career after a decades-long stint as an alternative school educator where she worked with some of the district's most-at-risk students.
However, Basarich's proudest moment came in 1993 when she was selected Sioux City Teacher of the Year by the joint cabinet of the Sioux City Education Association and the Sioux City Community School District.
"I was the first Black person to receive that honor," she said. "I was so happy because I wanted to be a role model for children of color as well as a role model for my fellow teachers."
Indeed, Basarich always wanted to be an educator.
"Even as a little girl who loved playing 'school' with her friends, I was, inevitably, the teacher," she said with a smile. "The teacher got to sit up in front and that's where I always wanted to be."
Graduating from East Texas State University, in Commerce, Texas, Basarich moved to Sioux City after being offered a job as a substitute coach and teacher with the district.
"When I came to Sioux City, I was working in the high school," she said. "After two year, a permanent position opened up at Emerson and I took it."
It was as an elementary school teacher that Basarich found her passion.
"You go into a classroom with high expectations, a positive outlook and flexibility," she said. "If something's not working, you have to be able to change it. That's where being flexibility came in handy."
Equally as important was maintaining a sense of humor.
"You've got to have a sense of humor in order to understand kids, especially elementary school kids," Basarich said.
Read the rest of her story by The Sioux City Journal's Earl Horlyk here