This June, the Bromfield community will say goodbye to longstanding math teacher Margaret Zimmer, who has spent the entirety of her 23-year teaching career in Harvard.

Mrs. Zimmer is very excited about her retirement. She shares that she and her husband “have been planning this for some time, and have big plans.” Though she acknowledges that many teachers are currently choosing to retire because of the exhaustion from COVID-19, this is not the case for Zimmer—retirement this year was “all part of the plan.”

So, what are the “big plans” Mrs. Zimmer speaks of? She and her husband plan to move permanently to their northern Vermont house that they built four years ago. They have been downsizing in preparation for the big move in recent years, and now it is time! They have even started a small garlic farm which they hope to expand further.

Next year, Mrs. Zimmer’s life will be a busy one. While in Vermont during the school closure, she had already started extensive volunteer work which she plans to continue. As an avid skier, she is looking forward to being able to ski during the week when the mountains are less crowded. She also plans to finish hiking the 48 4,000-footers in the White Mountains with her husband – they have hiked 25 so far! 

When asked what she’ll miss most about teaching at Bromfield, Mrs. Zimmer answers, “I think the students, and the opportunity to take courses in math, which I really love to do, so I really have enjoyed taking courses myself to improve my craft”. Her craft certainly is top-notch!

Mrs. Zimmer also notes that her biggest accomplishment while at Bromfield is finishing her master’s degree in mathematics for educators at Harvard University. She is particularly proud of being able to apply her teaching skills to teach geometry to her own two children, as well as, the friends and workplace peers she has made throughout her time at Bromfield.