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(8/12/2019) - A mid-Michigan woman who inspired young minds for generations sadly passed away over the weekend. Vickie Weiss spent more than 50 years as an elementary school teacher in Grand Blanc. Friends say Vickie was a woman who inspired and cultivated curiosity and compassion. "She lived to teach. She lived to make a difference in kid's lives for 55 years," Vickie's son, Sandy Ring, said. Weiss was an icon of the Grand Blanc School District and taught for more than half of the district's 100 years. "She wanted kids to have their feet on the ground and see what is happening out there in the world," Grand Blanc Schools District Superintendent Clarence Garner said. Vickie taught fourth and fifth grades here in room 200 and 201 on the second floor of the Perry Innovation Center. Sometimes her lessons extended outside these walls. Vickie would take her students on field trips, sometimes as far as France. Vickie's daughter, Jan Crawford once had her mom as a teacher and would follow in her footsteps. She took her mom's lessons and made them part of her classroom. "Find that to be one of the best traits to take into the classroom and to work with kids in that way to make things meaningful and play beyond the classroom," Crawford said. Vickie's passion for giving children a brighter future didn't end in Grand Blanc. She was a board member for the Voices for Children Advocacy Center, which was a group once named for her late husband, Judge Robert Weiss. Vickie carried on his commitment to protecting children in Genesee County, and every Christmas, she would go there and sit down with her students and read "The Night Before Christmas."             "So, some of those things changed from time to time, but her commitment and her passion never did," Vickie's daughter, Pam Serwa said. Vickie's children say they'll miss their mother's passion. At the end of the day, they know their mother isn't far away. Without them even realizing it, both daughters have their glasses on top of their head, just like their mom did for so many years.             "Somehow this our storage place for glasses when we need them they are where they need to be, and we can grab them quickly," Crawford said. A memorial service will be held at 5 pm this Saturday at Camp Copneconic. The family has asked everyone to share their memories of Vickie. They've also asked in lieu of flowers, please consider making a donation to one of the following organizations that was so important to Vickie: Camp Copneconic www.campcopneconic.org/donate or the Flint Cultural Center Academy (FCCA), checks can be mailed to 601 Second Street, Flint, MI 48503 (memo: Vickie Weiss Memorial).