Retired Medical Lake educator keeps her eye turned to the east – the Far East

By RYAN LANCASTER

Staff Reporter

Medical Lake resident Eufemia T. Munn, 71, isn't ready to relax into retirement just yet, even after an education career that spans job descriptions, grade levels and continents.

A former principal of Blair Elementary, now Michael Anderson Elementary, Munn took early retirement in 1993 to care for her ailing husband, Dr. Merton D. Munn, who passed away two years later. These days, instead of a leisurely life, the fate of a school located half a world away occupies much of her time.

Munn's journey from the town of Balabagan in the Philippines to Medical Lake began after meeting her husband at Silliman University, one of the country's largest colleges. She was assistant dean of women and he was vice-president for academic affairs before becoming director of research with the United Board for Christian Higher Education in New York.

They married in 1967 and she traveled as Dr. Munn's personal secretary to more than 80 universities in 11 Asian countries. After three years the couple moved to Spokane and he was hired to lead Whitworth College's education department where he had once been dean.

“When we came to Spokane my husband said, ‘Now this is your chance to look at what you might want to do,'” Munn said. While she'd always enjoyed university life, “the first 10 years are very important to a child's future,” she said, and she was drawn to elementary aged students.

She taught elementary special education for many years, first at Lakeland Village and then at Blair when the program was moved. She became the school's principal in 1987 and moved with her husband to a house on Silver Lake.

In 1992, while visiting her hometown in the Philippines, Munn's husband raised the idea of starting a preschool in a small church room used for Sunday school classes. Though in a Christian church, the school would be open to students of all religions, serving as a bridge in a community where more than 50 percent of the population is Muslim.

After her husband's death, Munn devoted her time to what was named the Shalom Learning School, which began with a few kindergarteners in 1996. In 2007 it was recognized by the country's Department of Education as a K-6 elementary school with nearly 260 students.

Through Shalom, Munn launched one of the only libraries in the Philippines, offering students the chance to learn English through reading. She started shipping surplus books and supplies donated by the Medical Lake School District and came out of retirement in 2000 to earn money for the project.

For four years Munn taught fifth-grade students in China, enabling her to visit Shalom every six months and to introduce students to the joy of reading. She tells a story about a time she brought a group of third grade students to the library.

“One boy was just hugging his book saying, ‘My best friend, my best friend.' He's now a sophomore at Silliman University,” Munn said.

In 2005 Munn came back to Medical Lake for some rest and gardening. Only five months later, however, she landed a two-year placement in Chile teaching North American children of parents employed by a mining corporation.

Now she's been home for a few years, spending the warmer months in the garden and entertaining a steady stream of company, but the school is still her priority. She spends much of the winter speaking to churches and organizations about the school and trying to secure donations.

Most contributions come from a fundraising campaign in Australia, the U.S. and the Philippines. According to a 2007 article in the daily newspaper “The Philippine Star, “the school's largest private contributor is one of Munn's own Medical Lake neighbors who asked that one school building be named after Merton D. Munn.

“After my husband died, I felt I needed purpose and the development of this school changed my life,” said Munn. “To earn money for the school, this is my purpose for life now, mainly.”

Ryan Lancaster can be reached at [email protected].