Every once and while we have some teachers who retire who have made a huge difference on campus and their absence will be strongly felt. Some of them have been here for decades, and others not so long. Mr. Orr has been here at Los Banos High School for 39 years, and if you didn’t know already, he has decided to retire this year.

LBHS is the only school that Mr. Orr has taught at, so it’s very special to him. Teaching was always what he wanted to do but most importantly, what he was “meant to do” he says.

Asking him to recall a favorite memory was a difficult question for him as you can imagine, so he had a couple. Some of Mr. Orr’s favorite times at this school was Kids Day, the Honor Flight Program and of course, the success of his former students is very touching. If you didn’t know, Mr. Orr was actually the one who started up Kids Day through the FFA program. Orr, along with Rochelle Creighton, also started up Senior Banquet as well.

Orr is very passionate about the Tiger students. He feels that people only hear about the bad things, and not the good things and successes the students have accomplished.

In addition, Orr has been an important part of the FFA program over the years. This year’s FFA banquet was dedicated to him and his involvement with classes, students, and the yearly National Convention trip. In a dedication written by Corie Falaschi (11), she said that “when he takes on a project, his goal is not only to win just like all of us, but that he does his best to make sure that every student does their best.”

She also stated that Mr. Orr “is brutally honest. He will always give his opinion and the best advice he can give yet is, ‘suck it up buttercup.'”

“Without Mr. Orr, I would not be who I am. He taught me everything I need to know from showing my first lamb to public speaking,” Falaschi said as she finished her dedication speech.

Orr has big plans after his retirement.  He will continue to work in Lodi at a fruit farm until his wife retires and then travel. In his spare time, he wants to fish more and continue raising livestock. He also has three kids and has been married for 35 years.

Overall, Mr. Orr has done a lot of great things for our school and caring for his students, so we should all thank him for everything he has done! If you see Mr. Orr around campus, make sure you say your goodbyes and wish him good luck as he begins a new life adventure.