Benton Consolidated High School did not have an art program when Gary Messersmith attended school — so he decided to do something about it.

“I received a bachelor’s degree in art education from Southern Illinois University Carbondale and started the BCHS art program in 1966,” Messersmith said.

More than 40 years later, the program has expanded and Messersmith is being recognized for his work. Named Educator of the Year by the Benton-West City Area Chamber of Commerce, Messersmith said it is a “very nice honor.”

“When I attended Benton schools, art was taught in the grade school but not at the high school,” he said. “I knew I wanted to be a teacher and I knew I wanted to come back to Benton.

“Barnie Genisio was the principal and superintendent of BCHS,” he said. “He hired me to start the art program, and it quickly expanded. What started as an introduction to art with one instructor became a program with a full-time and a part-time instructor and then expanded again to two full-time teachers. The program still has two teachers, and I am proud and happy about that.

“The program started as an introduction to art that provides a basic foundation in art and history,” Messersmith said. “I had a lot of talented kids when I taught at BCHS that had never had an outlet to art before. Some very talented and very gifted students have walked through those doors.”

Messersmith said it is difficult to remember the names of all of the students who received their high school diplomas and went on to achieve greatness.

“Brad Loman is a costume designer in Hollywood,” he said. “Lisa Mitchell received an award for best watercolor in the nation in a scholastic art show. Anjie Hughes is now an instructor for Benton Community Consolidated District 47. Janet Frailey returned to Benton; she is an interior decorator of national proportion. Jim Batts is a caricaturist who does a lot of illustration and comic book work ... and the list goes on and on.

“Between 30 and 40 art and art-related careers have been launched from BCHS,” Messersmith said. “The school graduated a lot of students who have gone on to become teachers.”
Messersmith credits District 47 for its success.

“The Benton grade school district is one of the finest of its size,” he said. “The teaching staff is tremendous.”

“The BCHS art department has received a lot of scholarships from Rend Lake College to help students attend schools throughout the country,” Messersmith said. “It is great to see so many BCHS art students become so successful. I like to see students succeed.”

Messersmith served as an administrator while at BCHS.

“I served as dean of students, assistant principal and principal before I retired,” he said. “I was principal from 1990 until 1995.”

During his high school teaching career, Messersmith also sponsored extracurricular activities.
“I was sponsor of the Scarab yearbook for 20 years,” he said. “We did a lot of innovative things with the yearbook. I had many talented people to work with. The yearbook won the national competition in 1985. It was shown to other schools of our size.”

Messersmith said he has been drawing and painting since he was young.

“I discovered that I really liked to draw at an early age and the painting followed,” he said. “I took photos and later applied some of those photos to canvas. I have also used photos that other people have taken to create a painting.

“Art relates to so many fields,” Messersmith said. “It gives you a vocabulary of design and makes you a better consumer. A knowledge of art and color helps when you are choosing your clothes, painting a room or buying furniture.”

His retirement from BCHS enabled him to pursue opportunities with students who are pursuing advanced academic studies.

“When I retired in 1995, I went to work at Southern Illinois University Carbondale,” Messersmith said. “I serve as the center coordinator for student teachers in the education department. I have been a teacher in the education department and supervising student teachers and observation students in schools in Benton, Christopher and Ewing for the past 14 years.”

Messersmith said he is equally honored to work with student teachers. “These are some of the brightest people in the field today,” he said. “It is an honor to be working with people who will teach your children and grandchildren.”

He is also involved in community service.

“I have been on the Benton District 47 grade school board of education for the past seven or eight years,” he said. “I have been a member of the Benton Rotary Club for the past 24 years and have served as either chairman or co-chair of the Benton-West City Chamber of Commerce Rend Lake Car Show for the past 18 years. The same group of us have served as the car show committee for all of those years, as well.”

Messersmith and his wife, Ellyn, have been married for 42 years.

“Our son, Lee, is a minister in Aurora,” he said. “He and his wife, Angie, have a daughter, Amelia, or ‘Mia’ as we call her, who is 2 years old. Our son Chris lives in St. Louis and is a technician at Ziebart.”

He said things have changed since he began his teaching career.

“When I started as a teacher, school boards pretty much ran the local schools,” Messersmith said. “The federal government was not involved that much. Now, they want to make all of the teachers accountable.”

Messersmith said his family perhaps swayed his career choice. “There are a lot of teachers in my family,” he said. “Half of my cousins or more and the majority of their kids are teachers. I had an uncle who had a doctorate degree in physical education. He was the patriarch of the family who made sure that we all got an education.”

As a side note, Messersmith also has a love of vehicles. “I participated in off-road racing when I was younger,” he said. He also has a vintage vehicle or two, in addition of having a love for the eclectic.

“We have different themes in some of the rooms of our home,” Messersmith said. “We have a room with an antique theme, one with a western theme and a room with a Coca-Cola theme for entertaining. It is all fun.”