The Hancock-Henderson Quill, Inc.

Meet Your Neighbor

by Deb Olson, The Quill

Meet your neighbor Grant Rogers a new 5th Grade teacher at La Harpe Elementary.

Grant was born in Colorado Springs, CO and raised in Tucson, AZ.

He and his family currently live in Blandinsville.

Grant's father is Steve Rogers, a retired CEO for a Juvenile Delinquent Rehab Program.

His step-mother Ann Rogers is a retired elementary teacher.

Grant's mom, Christie Rogers, works as a children's counselor for the Pasqua Yaqui Indian Reservation. All live in Tuscon, AZ.

Grant has five siblings. His older brother Eric Rogers is a football coach in Tucson, AZ.

His older sister, Colleen Rogers is a special-ed teacher in Charlotte, NC.

Grant has two younger sisters, Jessica Dembro, a lawyer in Boston, MA and Rosie Meyer, a Middle School Language Arts teacher.

His younger brother Brett Wham is a Mechanical Engineer in Flagstaff, AZ.

Grant's grandmother Elaine Rogers lives in Springfield, VT. Grant says "she is over 90 years old and still hauls her own wood from the truck to the basement."

He attended Linfield College, receiving a Bachelor of Science degree in Finance. At Linfield, Grant was the captain of the college baseball team. He received a Masters of Arts degree in Elementary Education from Western New Mexico University.

Previously, Grant worked 4 years as a manager for Hertz and for 2 years in commercial real estate in Portland, OR. Then he spent 2.5 years serving in the United States Peace Corps where he was an elementary teacher in Zambia.

Back in the United States, he taught kindergarten and 7th grade math at a Navajo Indian Reservation. He taught 5th grade in Macomb for 1 year before coming to La Harpe Elementary.

Grant and his wife, Sydney Null were married last summer. Sydney is an organic farmer who works as a substitute teacher in the winter. They have not yet started a family.

Grant loves playing any type of sport, but especially soccer and golf. He says he is "my wife's farmhand during the summer."

For summer vacation he says, "My wife and I go to our field of weeds and vegetables".

In the future Grant and his wife hope to make their farm more efficient so they can get to sleep at a reasonable hour at night. He also hopes to begin coaching football and baseball again.