Reading area a memorial to teacher

Teacher Kim Phillips wanted to transform the courtyard of grass and dirt patches at Lois Craig Elementary School into a reading garden of wildflowers and shade trees.

But a bizarre traffic accident on Interstate 15 on a May afternoon cut the dream short and ended the life of the 40-year-old first-grade teacher, a mother of two. In the accident, a dump truck vaulted over a median wall and crushed Phillips' sport utility vehicle.

On Wednesday, about 600 pupils and several of Phillips' family members gathered around the courtyard to dedicate a tree and benches to the memory of their teacher. They hope the 12-foot ash will be just the beginning of the garden Phillips had dreamed of sowing.

"My mom loved to read books and she loved the outdoors," Phillips' daughter, Sharli Kelly, said. "This was a great way to remember her."

To formally dedicate the tree, Phillips' friend and fellow teacher, Shelli Lefebre, read Phillips' favorite children's book to the pupils assembled. The book, Bimwili and the Zimwi, is a tale from Zanzibar of a little girl, a monster and a shell.

Lefebre said Phillips was part of a group of teachers who socialized outside work, teachers who had been devastated by the accident. Some have decided to leave the North Las Vegas school because of it.

"She had told me I had to stay, so I'm staying," Lefebre said. "Her smile, her enthusiasm ... even on her bad days, she was just a fun person in and out of school."

After the accident, Phillips' team-teacher, Telora Ervine, taught with the aid of a long-term substitute. Ervine was unable to attend the ceremony.

"Telora was strong for the rest of us," Craig principal Gloria Brooks said.

The first-grade room where Phillips and Ervine taught was not changed after the accident to maintain some continuity for their 31 pupils. A few weeks ago, Phillips' husband, Kevin Kennedy, finally cleared out some of her materials.

"It's amazing, all the books," he said.

Kennedy said he would be brainstorming about ways to develop a garden in the courtyard. He is looking for donations from landscapers. Bedrock Landscape and Davis Nursery donated the tree and bench.

"She wanted to make a park area for the kids, a little sanctuary," Kennedy said. "Most likely, it will be an ongoing project. She wanted to make it a better place. She wanted everyone to read."

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