CHERRY TWP — Darlene Twentier, an office secretary at Dassa McKinney Elementary School, has been named the state Educational Support Professional of the Year.

The statewide award honors Twentier for her 25 years in the Moniteau School District. The Pennsylvania State Education Association is giving the award to Twentier on Saturday at the Pittsburgh Hilton.

Twentier of Eau Claire has been a building secretary for 22 years, the past 14 of those at Dassa.

"I heard someone once say if you love what you do, you'll never work a day in your life," Twentier said. "I don't want to say I don't have bad days, but I love what I do."

Twentier learned she was nominated for the award at a surprise party in the school library in November.

"I'm excited, but more surprised," she said. "It was a very kind (nominating) letter."

This is the 10th year of the award, according to a spokesman for the state association. Nominating forms are mailed to all the local unions, and the board of directors for the Educational Support Professionals chooses the recipient.

Fellow secretary Deanna Panza said Twentier is active in the community and has organized Salvation Army bell ringing for years. Ironically, Panza said, because Twentier will be in Pittsburgh receiving the award Saturday, she and the others will be ringing without her.

Twentier and the staff she signed up to ring the bell last year won the traveling trophy raising the most money in Butler County.

Her other community projects are numerous.

When one of the faculty members was deployed to Iraq, Twentier initiated a project to buy a bulletproof vest for him, according to a news release. She also initiated the "Dear Abby Adopt a Soldier" project to send cards and packages.

She has chaperoned dances, sporting events, overnight field trips to Gettysburg, New York City and Toronto. She volunteers at the Academic Decathlon and in building props for the school musical.

Previously, she was secretary of the her local union and was the annual coordinator of Daffodil Days for the American Cancer Society. Other community involvement includes being a certified first responder, president of the Eau Claire Volunteer Fire Department Ladies Auxiliary, chairwoman of the Eau Claire Community Day, a church youth group leader, and officer with booster clubs.

With this state award, she is moving to the national competition. If she wins that award, she will win $5,000 for the charity of her choice.

She'll be joined at Saturday's ceremony by her husband, Gary; her daughters Christie Twentier and Jennifer Karnes; and her 4-year-old granddaughter, Mackenzie.

She'll also give a speech, which she admits she is a little nervous about.

"I'll talk mostly about the kids who taught me more than I've taught them," she said.

As a previous federal worker and a stay-at-home mother, she started at the school district as a classroom aide just to help out. Three years later she went to the high school as a secretary. Later she moved to Washington Elementary, and finally to Dassa when Washington closed.

"I wasn't going to stay at this job," she said.

She said the students have made her appreciate how much some of them need to do just to get an education. She's learned there are students who don't get enough to eat or don't have a stable family life.

"I didn't know how (Children and Youth Services) worked when I started here," she said.

She said she loves working with the children and she loves her job.

Now, she's been there long enough to see the children of past students who are students themselves, she said.