Golden Apple Award: Gabrielle Haston, Dade County Middle, High School

DADE COUNTY, Ga. (WDEF) — One north Georgia choir teacher always has her students leaving her class on a high note. Gabrielle Haston with Dade County Middle and High School earned this week’s Golden Apple Award.

Haston’s family was able to present her with the award.

“You know it feels good to see someone that works as hard as Mrs. Haston being recognized,” Principal Brent Cooper said. “She puts her heart and soul into this job and we appreciate the recognition.”

When asked who Gabrielle Haston is, her response was as follows:

“A wife, a mother and also a choir teacher. I do what I do because I believe that music is the way that we can shape young people into who they were meant to be. So, by using the avenue of music, it helps them discover their full potential of what they could do. It helps give them confidence in themselves; and by learning different music from different cultures, they get to see perspectives of other people.”

We asked her husband, Nathaniel, about why she was deserving of this recognition. He said, “Oh, she’s amazing. So gifted, so strong, so talented, so loving. Awesome teacher, awesome person. Yeah, love of my life.”

When her son was asked what he could tell us about Mrs. Haston, he said, “nothing that hasn’t already been said.” And her daughter said she makes her eat her vegetables.

“I like that I get to sing with kids all day long,” Haston said. “I like to make music. And I like when they realize how beautiful something is that they’ve created, that will light their eyes up.”

She says she decided to be a music teacher because of her family, who are all music-oriented.

“Our family reunions are where we do a potluck together, then everybody brings out the instruments and everybody just sings for like an hour after we eat,” Haston continued.

Haston wants her students to remember her as an encourager and that she helped them know they could do what they wanted to do. And that she was in their corner.