Page 14 Your friends and community March 20, 2015

Jillian NadiakBSP Reporter

Sixty-year old Billy Johnson is a man that everyone knows. But there is much more to be known about the man himself.

Though you’re not supposed to judge a book by its cover, Johnson is often misunderstood. However, if you have ever had the rare chance to look into his bright blue eyes or speak with him, you have had the chance to see up close the timid demeanor of a “really good” person.

Soft spoken with a warm voice and reserved disposi-tion, Johnson will speak when spoken to but usually keeps to himself. “It has taken me 20 years to get to the point where Billy and I now have a conversation once in a while,” said Stone Ridge resident Bill Davenport.

Johnson has become a staple at Emmanuel's Market-place. With his specifically blue jacket, blue plaid shirt, and blue Levi’s that the owner Emmanuel Gerondaras helps him get every season at JC Penny or Walmart, he is instantly recognizable. No matter what the weather, you can find Johnson at the plaza.

“I’m here every day and Billy is here every single day. Since I’ve known Billy, he only had sniffles one time and that’s all it was. Just sniffles,” said Gerondaras. “He comes here three to four times a day. If Billy wasn’t here, some-one would notice."

Although he is a self declared “shy guy” and hides the few words that he has to say behind a thick white beard, the people who know him have a lot to say. At the men-tion of Billy’s name, the women who work at the Deli in Emmanual’s eyes lit up. “If he sees you are having trouble loading your groceries he will come over and help you load them,” said Colleen Baggatta, everyone nodding and seconding what she said in agreement. “We’ve known him for as long as we have worked here.”

“A long time ago there was very bad weather and I was coming in very early in the morning around 4 a.m. and he was already here and yet I felt safe because he was there,” Helena Proed chimed in. “He didn’t even want to come in. I mean, we don’t talk but he said ‘Good Morning’ and watched me go in. He waved and left as if to make sure I felt safe."

Another employee, Jennifer Freer, said that Johnson is “very conscientious of everything.” Johnson is always on the look out. If a dog is left in a car with the windows up,

he will make sure that someone is aware of it. He will also walk you to your car at night if you feel uncomfortable.

Johnson said that he hikes about a mile every day to get to the plaza in Stone Ridge. At 6 a.m. he gets his morning coffee at Dunkin Donuts and has lunch later on at Em-manuel’s Marketplace. However, Johnson doesn’t accept anything for free.

“Billy Johnson is one of the nicest guys I have ever met,” said Michelle Phillips who works at Dunkin Donuts. “He will accept but he insists on doing something in return.” She mentioned that he always helps pick up garbage in the parking lot among other things.

Johnson spends his time helping with bottle returns, doing “broom and shovel” work, setting up the shopping carts and cleaning up the parking lot. He seems more than content doing this and in return, he enjoys a good lunch and dinner.

“We’ve offered him a job here but he always would rather not,” said Gerondaras. "Billy is Billy,”

Johnson is incredibly versed in outdoors living accord-ing to Patty Phillips, an employee of Emmanuel’s. “He says that he has a hole dug in the ground that he sleeps in,” she said. "He covers himself in four to five sleeping bags underneath a lean-to.” The lean-to was built by Freer’s husband.

Johnson knows how to work with what he is given. He has his own garden and knows how to ward off bears. “A year or two ago, Billy said that he was sleeping,” said Freer. "He woke up because he heard something. There was a bear near him. He shook his chain really loud and the bear took off.”

“I think he is happy,” said Gerondara’s. "He’s probably happier than any of us which is rare to find. He’s just satis-fied with what he has."

A little time with Billy Johnson

Billy Johnson outside Emmanuel's Market this week. Photo by Rochelle Riservato.

Giving wisdom to WISERondout Valley High School English teacher, Joseph

Reeder has been a WISE (Wise Individualized Student Experience) mentor for over 17 years. “Mentor was the loyal friend of Odysseus entrusted with the care of Odys-seus’ son while he was off battling the Trojans,” explained Reeder. “Now, a mentor has come to mean anyone in a position to offer guidance and support, to lend an ear or a shoulder to cry on.” As a teacher, mentoring often occurs naturally. A teacher and a student can have a connec-tion either through the curriculum or through common interests. “These have been the most meaningful relation-ships I have had as a teacher with a student,” said Reeder. “So when WISE came to Rondout, I was drawn to the idea of mentoring a senior involved in a project of his or her choosing.”

Over those 17 years of mentoring WISE students, Reed-er has had two mentees per year. “At every presentation for those thirty plus mentees, I have gotten weepy – tears of pride, so it is difficult to single out my most memorable experience. Many times there comes a point in the pre-sentation when the mentee describes the impact I have made, and I become emotional. But what is even more moving during, the presentation we see a new human

being, a student turned adult. As a teacher, one wonders what effect, if any, one has on his students, but in WISE one deeply feels it.”

The most difficult part of being a mentor is resisting the desire to shape the project in the mentor’s image. It is difficult because the mentor is use to creating curriculum and disseminating knowledge to the student. In WISE, the students design the curriculum and gain knowledge through their individual process. Also, the mentor invests a great deal of intellectual and emotional attention and it can feel like they are working on the project together. As a mentor, you are not part of their project. You are an eye, you are a net, but you are not an agent. “The students I have mentored reinforce my wonder of the world,” said Reeder. “They teach me to appreciate the power of per-spective. They open my eyes.”

If I may presume to know what separates a good men-tor from an extraordinary mentor I might say it is the relationship that an extraordinary mentor allows to form. Working one-on-one without a script is a different experi-ence for a teacher and a student. For 13 years Rondout seniors have sat behind desks and have been the vessels into which teachers have poured the knowledge. WISE is more of a shared drink of water. Success and growth are not necessarily determined by a finished “product” suit-

able for framing. A mentor should be prepared to open his or her heart. A mentor should display genuine inter-est, compassion, and patience and do this with sincerity. For more information, email jreeder@rondut.k12.ny.us.

Rondout Valley WISE mentor, Joe Reeder with Sam Longbotham, one of his mentees. Photo and text cour-tesy of Andrew Lutz.