Carol Hannon-Orr is a retired art teacher who lives on nearby Pepin Lake with her husband Dave. During her 39 years of teaching, she was awarded Belle Plaine Teacher of the Year in 1990 and 2018-2019 and Minnesota Secondary Art Teacher of the Year in 2009-2010. Her extracurricular assignments included directing and choreographing musicals, full-length shows and one-acts for competition. In 2016 she joined a former student in directing a one-act that won the highest award at the State competition. She has also coached an outstanding award-winning Visual Arts team during her tenure. Carol also introduced students to numerous major art museums in the United States and Europe.

Carol enjoys all the arts, including dancing, theater, visual arts, singing, and creative writing. Her hobbies include traveling, flower gardening, and creating in the arts. Carol enjoys volunteering with the New Prague Area Arts Council and getting together and creating with friends. Many of Carol’s past students, now adults, stay in contact with her! Kiersten Dahl-Shetka, Carol’s past student teacher, works on projects together. Kiersten said of Carol, “Carol has been and is an esteemed help on the Tower project this summer! She is an amazing human with such a great capacity to help and get things done! She is masterful and fun in all that she does; creating art, teaching, helping, volunteering, acting, singing…and she is a great friend!”

Carol’s Bronze plaque pulls you in to look closer. She tells a story about how they found a home. And her bronze plaque tells the story in a visual way. When Carol and David were looking for a home they wanted three things, Oak trees, a rose garden, and water…They found it on Pepin Lake!