You’ve been transfered
In the spirit of April Fool’s Day, here is a story about a prank pulled on current county spokesman Don Mohler as told to me by the victim himself. (You can read more stories of pranksters and victims here.)
It was 1972, and Mohler was 22 and a first year ninth-grade social studies teacher at Lansdowne High School.
“It was a great job,” said Mohler, who did just about every job imaginable during his 30 years with the Baltimore County Public Schools system and finally retired as executive director of Student Support Services.
“It was 7 or 8 minutes away from my apartment. I loved the school, loved the kids, loved the administration,” Mohler said.
Mohler’s tenure at his first school was almost cut short - or so the new teacher thought.
Mohler went to the office and found a letter, on county stationary, explaining that he was being transferred to General John Stricker Middle School in Dundalk — practically the other side of the world for the Catonsville resident.
“I went crazy, screaming in the front office,” Mohler said.
“How come nobody talked to me about this? Why was I just learning about this in a letter,” were some of the thoughts Mohler said were running through his head.
That’s when Harry Buchheister, the school’s principal pulled Mohler into the office and listened to his new teacher vent a little.
“That’s when I saw a little twinkle in (Buchheister’s) eye and heard a snicker behind me,” said Mohler. “There were all the secretaries and the other administrators and some teachers standing behind me. They were doubled over on the floor laughing.”
“Welcome to the office, rookie,” Buchheister said, according to Mohler.