When Debra Boucher Wolf was growing up and deciding what to do with her life, she always thought, in the back of her mind, that she would be a teacher. Now, after a 30-year career in education (some as a teacher, some as a counselor), Wolf knows she made the right choice.
Wolf graduated from Dublin High School in 1971 and went to Tarleton State University where she majored in education. When she finished her degree in 1975, she applied for a teaching job in Cleburne working with special education students.
At her new job, she split her time between two small schools in the area. “I drove in the morning to a town called Lillian, and in the afternoon, I was at a school called Keene which is nearby,” she said.
Wolf wasn’t totally satisfied with the job, and one day she was talking to her friend and mentor about what to do next. Her friend suggested that Wolf would be a wonderful school counselor.
Wolf liked the idea, and began to look into counselor certifications. To become a counselor she would have to teach for two more years, then earn her certificate. So she continued teaching and then enrolled in classes at Texas Woman’s University. She earned her counseling degree in 1979.
Wolf immediately found a job as the school counselor at Gerard Elementary in Cleburne, and remained there for 26 years. “It was a wonderful career,” she said. “I loved every minute of the day. I lived a block away from school, so my kids and I were able to walk to school and it was just a delight.”
During her time as a counselor, Wolf also went back to school briefly at Southern Methodist University to earn certification in helping children with dyslexia, graduating in 1992. “That was helpful,” she said.
Throughout her 30 years in education, Wolf enjoyed creating fun experiences for her students, whether that meant planning experiences for them like in-school museum visits or Red Ribbon Week.
Wolf retired in 2011. Shortly after, her husband’s parents passed away, and Wolf helped her husband take care of their assets. “They had built a little apartment complex, which is just four units and it’s delightful,” Wolf said. “It just has a little studio kind of effect with an upstairs and downstairs.”
Wolf and her husband took over management of the complex. Her husband passed away a few years back, and now Wolf manages it alone.
Wolf met her late husband William David Wolf at Sunday School in 1980. Wolf prayed that he would call her even though it was quite unlikely because he was so shy. “I was at a barbecue with some friends of mine and the phone rings, and it was him,” she said. “He wanted to take me out to a movie. It was wonderful. We went to see the first Star Wars.” The Wolfs married in 1981.
They had two children together, Alison, 40 and Steven, 39. Alison has two children herself, and Wolf stays busy as a grandmother. “They live close, which is wonderful,” she said.
In her free time, Wolf enjoys gardening and traveling the world with a group of her friends. She’s also active in her church, Cleburne Bible Church. She started attending the church after her husband passed away. She’s part of the congregation’s group for widows.
Throughout her life, Wolf has always leaned on her faith. It especially helped her when students she worked with were in tough situations. “I would hear kids stories that would make your hair curl — stories of abuse and neglect and those kinds of things,” she said. “But I can always see God working through it all.”
Wolf’s advice to Dublin graduates is to give 100 percent at anything they’re working on. “Just do your best at whatever level you’re at,” she said. “You’re gonna make it — just keep trying until you do. I had to use “fake it till you make it” because there were things I had no idea what I was doing, but I could fake it pretty well until I was sure of what I was doing. So just put all of your effort in whatever task you’re presented with. Don’t give it a half-hearted effort. Make it count, because everything does count in this life.”
Editor’s Note: This column chronicles what Dublin graduates have done since high school. If you have any suggestions for other grads, email publisher@dublincitizen.com.