Angela Trammell

BY JACLYN ROSE –

Angela Trammell was born in Sulzbach-Rosenberg, Germany and is the first and only member of her family to move to the United States.  “Growing up in Germany I really loved to be outside.  We have all four seasons but when there was snow on the ground and it was freezing cold we would still go outside.  We always played on the streets and did not have to worry about crime,” explained Trammell.

As a child, Trammell was an active girl scout and began babysitting early on.  In 1992 she started the five year training to become a preschool teacher.  Trammell met her husband, Dan, a United States Soldier, when he was stationed in Germany and Trammell was working in the infant room at Fort Louis.  The couple married in 2000.  “Marriage takes hard work, compromise, forgiveness, love … and love changes over time.  I love him differently now then I did when I first married him.  You have to be willing to grow together as a couple and appreciate everything, take nothing for granted.  And we never leave without saying ‘I love you’ because you never know for sure that you will have the chance to say it again.”  Trammell also has one son, Glen Murdoch, a college graduate who lives in Santa Cruz.

In 2002, after moving to the United States, the Trammells were stationed in Fort Hood, Texas.  There, she began working for the after school program on Post and decided to go back to school to become a teacher.  “I believe that education is so important, no one can take it away from you,” Trammell said.

In 2005, Dan retired from the Army and the couple moved to Arkansas to take care of the land purchased by his parents.  Trammell began working with the preschool program for the DeQueen-Mena Co-op in 2007 and was moved to Louis Durham Elementary in 2012.  “I love working with preschool.  The creativity level the children have and the fun when you see they got something is wonderful.  Sometimes the activity level is tiring,” Trammel said with a grin.  “But I am active too.  I get so much back from them, they still love everything you love and their curiosity and exploration and that they have fun in learning something new is so great.”

Trammell truly has a gift for working with young children, especially those with special needs.  “With a special needs child I first always make sure the kids are all accepting of each other exactly how they are,” explained Trammell.  “They have to know that we are a family.  I always look for the strengths the child has, what they can do.  Some need more time and you have to take that time, you can’t force them.  Preschool tends to be a little more flexible and without the stress of testing so that helps.  But I try to begin where a child is and work on their level and then begin pulling up.  I try to work in their strengths and then add new things.”

Arkansas is a long way from Germany, but Trammell loves her life in the United States.

“I believe that Polk County is the safest place to be.  I love it here.  I like that it is quick and easy to get around and I love the small town community and how if you are willing to make the right choices, you will always be able to find people who will help with no problem.  I believe your home is where your heart is, my home is here, my home is the school, my home is Germany,” said Trammell.

About Author

Jeri Pearson

Jeri is the News Director for Pulse Multi-Media and Editor of The Polk County Pulse. She has 10 years of experience in community focused journalism and has won multiple press association awards.

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