Dougherty County teacher honored by Sonny’s BBQ

ALBANY — For Elizabeth Faircloth, the recent recognition of her work as a teacher was something she neither sought nor expected. But when her name was called, she was overcome with emotion.

“Everything I do, I do for my students,” Faircloth said, shortly after being honored by Sonny’s BBQ for her work both in and out of her classroom. “It’s always been about them. I never asked for recognition. I just want them to have what they need to be successful.”

Faircloth, who was the recipient of the restaurant chain’s Random Acts of BBQ, is an Exceptional Students Program teacher at Dougherty Comprehensive High School. She has a reputation around the school for having a big heart and a soft spot for her students.

“She is this school personified,” Principal Eddie Johnson, who nominated Faircloth for the award, said Tuesday. “Anytime we have an event, she’s there cheering on the kids; anytime one of her students has a need, she’s on top of it. She’s everything we look for in a teacher and more.”

As part of the award, Sonny’s BBQ provided lunch for every employee at the school in Faircloth’s honor, and officials with the store also took a moment to heap praise on the veteran teacher.

“All of us agree that we could picture Mrs. Faircloth walking down the hallway and saying ‘How’s your mom,’ and ‘How was your weekend,’ and ‘Congratulations on the win at the basketball game,’ and we could kind of feel her smile and her energy just in the nomination that was written, and we felt like she was the perfect candidate for this type of recognition,” Taylor Chatelain, Sonny’s marketing manager, said

In addition to the lunch, Faircloth also was given some “Sonnys Swag,” which included branded items from the store.

Chatelain said that the nominations that came in from the Dougherty County School System have Sonny’s officials thinking about coming back in the spring.

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