When I arrived to meet Miss Loudon in her classroom, she was relaxed and reflective, perched on her reclining chair in front of a wooden stage. She sat amidst racks of character clothing, stage props and old photographs.
A former student of Miss Loudon’s stopped by to say hello, as have so many of her students over the years. “We’ll never uncover the veil of secrecy that is Miss Loudon,” the student said to me with a snicker. He was kneeling beside her, trying to recall 40 years of successful performances at Baldwin High under her creative direction.
“What about Grease?” he asked.
“Oh, that must have been the late ‘80s,” she replied. “Or was it the ‘90s? Oh, I can’t remember!”
Actually it was last year. But with a solid five shows a year over the past 40 years, you really can’t blame her. Loudon did remember the first show she put on in 1965, Bye Bye Birdie.
“That is my fondest memory,” she said, “because it was the first really cool thing that we got to do. It helped me fall in love with theater. There’s nothing like the first. The kids were so excited and so appreciative.”
Loudon first visited Maui on a summer trip back in the 1960s and, like most who visit the island, fell in love with it and vowed to return. After graduating from Central Missouri State Teachers College, Loudon found a job teaching at Baldwin High School.
Talk to any one of her students and you’ll quickly learn that Miss Loudon is an extremely dedicated and demanding teacher, a reputation she acknowledges demurely.
“I used to be intimidating to the kids, but as the years go by, you change,” she said. “I still yell. But I always tell them, ‘I am not mad, I am not angry. I am just yelling because I yell.’”
It’s difficult to imagine anything but warmth from the humble teacher. Miss Loudon has soft blue eyes and a pleasant smile. She speaks with great joy about her students. “It’s been lovely here at Baldwin because the kids have been so wonderful!” she said.
Loudon’s dedication to the students is one of her defining aspects. She started “Diamond Lil,” an annual performance of singing, dancing and acting that Loudon oversees, put on for the sole purpose of fundraising for the senior class. Every year, at the end of “Diamond Lil,” it is well known that when the time comes for Miss Loudon to go onstage to receive praise for her work, she is nowhere to be found.
It made sense then, that when discussing the celebration next weekend in her honor, Loudon shyly covered her face with her hands.
“It’s an overwhelming thought that somebody would want to do this for me,” she said. “Baldwin has fabulous, successful teachers and I think I’m just one of many talented individuals here.”
Loudon’s simple advice she gives to her students when they leave her classroom is, “If you love it, then do it.” To her, theater is a life skill that teaches you discipline and work ethic, attributes that carry over into life after high school.
“Having compassion in life is one of the most important things,” she said. “Always remember that everybody is somebody.”
In an attempt to uncover the “veil of secrecy” that her former student spoke of, I asked Miss Loudon what it is about her that harbors such a celebration in her honor. She leaned back and shyly replied, “I’m just a theater teacher who goes to work, then goes home.” MTW
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