They say every one has a story, well, this man has many stories, thousands of stories; stories still continuing to be written in all the lives of those he's touched. Dallin Malmgren is a retired high school teacher of 33 years. He taught several different courses; creative writing, English, business communications, as well as journalism, and later coached the tennis team. He is also a published author. He was my high school Business Communications teacher during my senior year, and was one of my favorite, all-time teachers. He was in the early part of his teaching career when I sat in his class, but that didn't hold him back from motivating and inspiring us to become better and deeper people (usually done by more seasoned veteran educators). His sense of humor was unmatched. He had a way of getting and keeping your attention, without much effort. Mr. Malmgren was a fantastic educator, but an even better person. His zest for life was expressed daily in his classes. He had nicknames for some of us, and would give out verbal awards that recognized zany things about many of his students. He had a way of connecting with you that seemed to melt away your defenses. He was someone you could trust and talk to, never having to worry about it turning into something you'd later regret. He told us stories about his earlier days, some that I still remember to this day. One story I vividly remember is one of him hitch-hiking across the American West (from California to Missouri), and doing it from a very fast car driven by a military pilot. I guess the quality I liked about him the most was his authenticity. He wasn't arrogant. He wasn't there to boss us around and abuse his power as a teacher. He was there to share his knowledge with us, and enjoy the excitement in seeing our development. One thing I remember about being a student in his class was having to give a speech (sorry, I don't remember the topic), and at the end, I quoted the last few lines from the movie "Vision Quest". His eyes lit up and seemed very impressed that I had taken the time to prepare my speech (unlike most of the others who just winged it). I can only speak for myself when I say, Mr. Malmgren made a difference in my life, but I'm more than certain that there are thousands of others out in the world that are better people today because of the influence of this man. He answered his calling, dedicating his life to serve in the classroom. Teachers don't get much credit these days, so those of you that had one that influenced you, make an effort to contact them, and tell them what difference they made in your life. Mr. Malmgren, you're the best, and one of my Men of Influence. Thanks for sharing life with me.
Classic Mr. Malmgren
His authenticity comes through in his quote
Can you tell we had a good time?
His favorite thing to do