It was a party worthy of a beloved, longtime teacher in Rockbridge County: Earlier this month, the community gathered in the Jefferson Ballroom at the historic Natural Bridge Hotel to celebrate Roberta B. Lyle’s’ 97th birthday.
“Miss Roberta,” known to many former students as Roberta Blacke, taught second- and third-graders in Glasgow and Natural Bridge elementary schools for more than 30 years.
On July 11, more than 100 family members, friends and former students gathered to sing Lyle’s praises, share stories, joke, pray, cut cake and celebrate a woman many of her students said helped shape them into the adults they are today.
The birthday party had a sweet, unofficial theme: Give people their flowers while they are still able to enjoy them. “Instead of us doing like other people that say, ‘We’re going to wait till what the big 100,’ we’re going to celebrate and give flowers right here, right now,” Jessica Howe, a great-niece, said to kick off the festivities.
Lyle then made her grand entrance to the ballroom decked out in an elegant gown in peach, her signature color. After she took her seat at the head of the room, about a dozen former students were invited to stand up as the crowd cheered.
Some of those students, now well into their 70s, said Lyle’s impact on their lives didn’t end when the school year was over.
“She really took an interest in the student,” Marvin Watts told The News-Gazette. “She had dedication, discipline and, at the time, wanted me to be better than I wanted to be. She just did a great job just making you feel special and staying on you in the future.”
One of five siblings, Lyle still enjoys her large, close-knit extended family, many of whom were her students themselves. Dozens of family members across several generations –with surnames spelled both Branch and Branche -- traveled far and wide to put together the party and celebrate her many accomplishments.
Born in Glasgow in 1929 into the segregationist south, Lyle graduated with a bachelor of science degree in education from Virginia State University, the country’s first fully state-supported four year university for Black Americans. She went on to earn a master’s degree in education at the University of Virginia.
Lyle started her teaching career at Glasgow Elementary School 2, which served Black students. After schools integrated in 1965, she became the first Black teacher at Natural Bridge Elementary School. Her family believes she is the oldest living Black teacher in Rockbridge County.
In addition to teaching, Lyle was the first Black person elected to the Glasgow Town Council in 1974 and stayed on the Council for 34 years. Over the years, she has been a dedicated member of numerous civic organizations including the NAACP, the Order of the Eastern Star, Concerned Citizens of Glasgow and the Virginia Retired Teachers Association, as well as served on the boards of Stonewall Jackson Hospital and the Rockbridge County United Way. She has been a lifelong member and pillar of Union Baptist Church, serving on the board of deaconesses and singing in several church choirs.
But teaching was her first passion and where she first found herself in a leadership role in the community.
In the brief moment that The News-Gazette could catch Miss Roberta amid the joyous hubbub, she revealed her favorite part about teaching: “Just being with the kids. It was an honor to be around them,” Lyle said. “I love being around children. That was just my place to be.”
Lyle’s niece, Atlanta-based author Laveeta Branche, said that there were two things that really made Lyle so good at working with young students: her ability to lead by example and her faith in God.
“She would teach you something … and then she would model it,” Branche said. “She would try to lead more young people into school, and especially, to God. That’s what made her the way she is. That’s what we get our principles from, it’s from the word of God. And she used that to teach and to love people. When you love on people, no matter what they go through, they’ll learn quicker.”
After songs and prayers, closest family members took turns at the podium to tell stories about “Aunt Roberta.” Many described her as always being there any time any family member far or near needed her, especially at graduations, church dedications and during times of tragedy. She even managed to hop on a train to make it to Branche’s book signing in Atlanta when she was 94 years old.
Nephew Christopher Branche said she equally enjoyed all of life’s simpler moments - including all of his sports games and then his children’s games as well. “Whether or not it was freezing outside, whether or not it was raining, regardless, she said, ‘I’m coming with y’all.’ If you’re talking about somebody who sticks with you, that’s the lady right there.”
After family members spoke, the floor opened up for tributes from the wider community, including former students. It soon became clear that Lyle is not just the matriarch for her own family, but for the entire Glasgow community.
Reggie Webb, who was in Lyle’s second-grade class at Natural Bridge and played sports with her sons, Bobby and Carl, remembered that rain or shine, Lyle and his mother were at all the boys’ baseball and basketball games.
“She and my mom would be on the back row in the bleachers with their scarves on their heads so they wouldn’t mess their hair up,” Webb said. “I thank her for making me part of her family 60 years ago.”
Watts, Lyle’s self-proclaimed “student pet,” told a hilarious story about how his bad behavior in the second grade at Glasgow Elementary School (2) made “Miss Roberta” move his desk directly beside hers. He thought that made him extra special to her.
“But what made me special?” Watts joked. “I was within distance that allowed her to quickly get my attention.”
Instead of reading remarks himself, Watts handed his tribute off to Branche to read aloud while he took his old spot right beside Miss Roberta. This time, instead of giving her trouble, he gave her a big hug.
After tributes and dinner, Lyle was serenaded with three joyful renditions of “Happy Birthday” as she admired not one, but two cakes.
Then, for the first time all night, the room went silent as Lyle made her way to the podium to address the crowd.
Despite a night of praise, her words were humble and to the point. “I am so pleased that the Lord has spared me to be here with you, and I thank you all for coming up to show your concern for me,” Lyle said. “God bless us all and take care of us and thank you for being here with me tonight.”
