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First principal was Elizabeth Ratliff

By Staff | Dec 19, 2009

To The Editor,

As the 83rd registered student in Lehigh Elementary, I was pleased to read your story about the new building. And, since we lived across Coolidge (one street south) from the school, my family was intimately involved with every aspect of the school.

My mother volunteered at the school daily (for more than half the day) long after I “graduated.” My father volunteered many nights after work as well. Both of them spent one or two Saturdays a month at the school between Girl Scouts and PTA fundraisers (which at that time were limited to spaghetti dinners). At times, I started to think we lived there!

Our beloved principal was Mrs. Elizabeth (Betty) Ratliff (I believe her name in the story was confused with that of Lee Ratner, the founder of the community of Lehigh Acres). She and her husband, Robert (Bob) Ratliff Sr., were educators for many years in Lee County, with Bob teaching at Edison when it was still our “Junior” and then “Community” College. Betty was the driving force behind as well as author of the addition of Florida history to the fourth grade curriculum. She also authored the textbook used in that class.

Linda J. (Tepper) Evans

Lehigh Acres