A cathartic moment in life with Michele Downey

Michele is a middle school teacher and a proud parent. Her family had to deal with a major health issue with their daughter, the only granddaughter in the family.  The wonderful support everyone provided her during this crisis was a cathartic experience.  And Michele's a very popular teacher - "a rock star without the rock star salary" she jokingly references to the low salaries that teachers receive.  Michele was heavily involved in acting and theater as a high school student.  This expressed her natural story-telling ability and that led to her success in the classroom with students, and she is someone they trust in those awkward tween years.  Helping students has become Michele's purpose.