A society is only as healthy as its teachers. Ours, you might say, is in trouble, partly because our teachers often feel underappreciated and unseen. Yet most of us can recall at least one teacher who had a powerful influence on our lives. From high school alone, I remember three: Marge Eggleston, a feisty fisherman’s wife who taught history; Ruth Emery, who taught literature; and Bob Beath, who galvanized the drama program at Sehome High School in Bellingham, Washington.