AFTER 30 YEARS WORKING AS A JANITOR, MAN FINALLY GETS HIS DREAM JOB AS PRINCIPAL
Joseph "Gabe" Sonnier, who lives in Louisiana, is a living example of the idea that it's never too late to follow your dreams. He chose to become a teacher after working as a janitor for almost thirty years, eventually rising to the position of principal at the same school he had cleaned. Sonnier's path changed in 1985 when he was taken aside for a transformative talk by Westley Jones, the principal of Port Barre Elementary at the time. "It's a good job and an honest living to be a janitor," he said. Sonnier, now sixty-three, remembers. "But you have limitless potential, which I taught you." As a teacher, I believe you would be more beneficial to the students. Instead of picking up papers, I would prefer to watch you grade them.
Sonnier enrolled at the University of Louisiana and Louisiana State University Eunice after being inspired by the principal's faith in his abilities. He worked mornings and evenings at the school to balance his studies with a rigorous schedule. After finishing there, he says, "I'd go home and do my homework." "I barely got any sleep."
Thankfully, Sonnier's diligence and hard work were rewarded. He earned an associate's degree in general studies from Louisiana State University Eunice in 2006 at the age of 39. He then went on to earn a bachelor's degree in elementary education from the University of Louisiana in 2008. After receiving his first teaching position, he went on to earn a master's degree in both education and science.
After 27 years of cleaning the same school, Sonnier was promoted to principal in 2013. "Who would have imagined that I'd be the leader of this school 33 years ago when I first stepped foot on this campus?" he asks, looking back on his journey.
After high school, Sonnier initially put his aspirations on hold to support his family. After his parents divorced, he took on a variety of jobs, such as construction, grocery work, and a job at a sawmill, to help his mother pay the bills. He eventually followed in his father's footsteps and worked as a janitor at Port Barre Elementary, where he had spent a large portion of his life.
"When I started, I wanted to work as a janitor for five or ten years and then look for something else to do," Sonnier says. Even though his tenure as a janitor went longer than he had planned, he was able to change his life in the end and inspire others, including coworkers who went on to earn master's degrees. Sonnier advises against letting your present circumstances dictate who you will become in the future. "I always tell them that how you finish matters more than where you start."