Local woman honors community, past and present – Entertainment & Life – Lexington Dispatch

Known for her positivity, Lexington native Johnnie Mae Holloway shares her contagious hope for family, friends, students throughout Davidson County.

Recently named as the inaugural recipient of Guidance Counselor of the Year, Holloway credits her inspiration to nurturing experiences in Lexington.

“My motivation to become an educator actually happened when I was a fourth-grader at Cecil Elementary school. My teacher was Mrs. Alice Henderson and she was such a positive role model for me,” said Holloway. “She was caring and loving and this had a tremendous impact on my life at that time. I dreamed of becoming a teacher one day because of her influence.”

During her high school years, Holloway’s first job was as a child-care assistant at Tiny Tot Day Care.

“I was hired by Mrs. Mattie Terry and I grew to admire her greatly. I knew without a doubt I would pursue the field of education after graduation.”

Upon graduation from Lexington Senior High School, Holloway earned an associate’s degree in Early Childhood Education from Essex County College in Newark, N.J. in 1989 and a Bachelor of Arts Degree in English and special education from Kean University in Union, N.J., in 1991. She eventually relocated to New Jersey to be closer to her father who lived in New York at the time. Holloway applied for a position as a teacher’s assistant and was hired at Passaic County Vocational and Technical High School in Wayne, New Jersey, where she worked from 1987 to 1997.

During that time she became interested in becoming a guidance counselor.

“The one person who has inspired me the most is my aunt Marilyn Huling,” Holloway offered. “I spent a great majority of my time around her when I relocated to New Jersey. She retired with 31 years as a guidance counselor and was named New Jersey Counselor of the Year for Passaic County before she retired. She has been my mentor and inspiration.”

Holloway returned to Lexington in 1997 to be closer to her mother who was experiencing medical issues and applied for a position as an Exceptional Children’s Teacher at Eanes Alternative School. She worked with Lexington City Schools as an exceptional children’s teacher until being hired for the position as a guidance counselor in 2007. She has remained a counselor at Lexington Middle School for 12 years with a combined total of 28 years in education. During her tenure, Holloway earned a Master’s of Science in counselor education from North Carolina A&T State University in Greensboro in 2009.

“Over the years, I have been able to connect with students by incorporating positive energy, keeping a positive spirit and having a positive attitude,” said Holloway. “This has been a strategy for me to combat negativity. It is important for my students to feel good about their experience with their guidance counselor.”

She often finds hope through daily scripture readings including Philippians 4: “I can do all things through Christ that strengthens me.” Holloway said, “Every single day I come to work, I am on a mission to invest in my students by promoting success, providing preventive services and responding to identified student needs.”

Both of Holloway’s children followed in her footsteps as educators. Her daughter, Tonika Holloway, graduated from Ashford University and earned a Bachelor of Arts in early childhood education. Tonika currently serves as a program specialist in Fort Bragg. Her son, Garrett Holloway, earned degrees from the UNC-Chapel Hill in political science & African American studies. Garrett is an educator with the Winston-Salem Forsyth County school system and a candidate for City Council Ward 5 in Lexington.

“I knew my children would probably become educators because there are so many in my family and they were always exposed to either a teacher, school counselor or principal,” said Holloway. “Also, there were times when I was working on my license and I would have to take my children to evening classes with me. This played a major role and had a great impact on them. Both children have worked for Lexington City Schools at some point and were exposed to some of the best educators Davidson County had to offer.”

Holloway is a longtime member of Union Baptist Church and one of her favorite pastimes includes genealogy research. As a member of the Hairston Clan, she has always been interested in ancestral research about the historic family. Holloway began learning more about the family when Garrett was a student at UNC and enrolled in a couple of genealogy classes.

One day while working on a project, Garrett found records that indicated Johnnie’s great-great grandparents were born into slavery on the Cooleemee Plantation in Davie County.

“As a result, I visited the Wilson Library on the campus of UNC where the original slave records are stored and the current owner of the plantation allows descendants to visit the private property,” she explained. “What was surprising was when I learned my mother, Lena, was named after my great-great grandmother (Lena) who was born there as a slave. The past two years have been a rewarding experience for me to discover so many things about my family I never imagined.”

Holloway pays tribute to the past and helps others imagine the possibilities to be found throughout generations. Many whom she encounters speak of her glowing personality and smile. She refers to Maya Angelou whom she also cites each day: “I’ve learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.”

Antionette Kerr is a media correspondent. You may email her at akerr@thewritefolks.net.