It didn’t feel right coming to school without Theodore “Teddy” Carter in the building, teachers at Chamblee High School said.
Carter, 58, died in May 2015 after an extended illness. He had been the campus supervisor and helped coach the school’s track and football teams.
Officials at Chamblee High decided to rename the gym in his honor, also ensuring his presence always was felt in the school.
“He was your go-to person,” said Tinikia Jones, Chamblee High’s head counselor. “He had such relationships with the community, they would call him, not the school, if a student was skipping. He just had such a presence. That’s because he lived there. He was the first person there at 5:30 and 6 (a.m.), even though his shift was over at 3 (p.m.) or so, he would stay til 7 or 8 most days.”
The DeKalb Board of Education made an exception recently allowing the name change. There typically is a three-year waiting period after someone’s death before something in the school district can be renamed for that person. It was not the first time such an exception was made.
“He was the most amazing human being I’ve ever met and in our loss of him, I’ve come to realize that,” special education teacher Susan Katz said. “Without getting emotional I’m not sure there’s much more for me to say. It’s not the same without him.”
According to his obituary, Carter was born Jan. 10, 1957, in Brooklyn, but spent several of his early years in Bamberg, S.C. A graduate of South Carolina State University, Carter served in the U.S. Army for 20 years, retiring as a major.
After his death, Carter was laid to rest in Bamberg. Survivors include his wife, Ava, daughter Lauren of Norcross, his mother, two siblings and a host of other relatives.
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