The challenge of finding a purpose in life is daunting, and many people spend much of their lives devoted to "finding themselves." Of these individuals, only a select few will challenge what they’ve been handed and ultimately find a true purpose.

Lue Phelps, data-processing clerk for Palo Alto High School, is one such individual. Phelps considers interacting with and assisting children, both her own and students, to be her true calling. "Being a part of the development of a person and hopefully encouraging that person to pursue many avenues to discover the direction most suitable to their interests and talents is the most rewarding thing in life," Phelps wrote in a letter to Voice reporters.

Though often removed from students, occupying a small room in the guidance office, Phelps’s job includes entering personal information for students entering the district, creating classes, processing grades, and dealing with transcripts. "All data applicable to the school eventually goes through me or to me," Phelps said.

Phelps considers her position at Paly to be her third career, preceded by work in retail and motherhood. "I consider being a mother my first career, it was the most important job," Phelps said. Phelps has one daughter who was schooled in the PAUSD. Her love as a mother extends to the children with whom she comes in contact. "I enjoy the children, and I don’t mind if they’re not perfect," Phelps said, laughing. "I think this [the school] is where the future is," Phelps said. "The biggest motivation is seeing the kids go off to their futures."

In 1979, Phelps started working in the area at Wilber, completing data-processing tasks. Phelps claims she began working in the district because "retiring was boring." "I figured I needed to go back for work, for money, but also to have a real purpose," Phelps said. The longevity of her career has been somewhat unintended, but Phelps finds the work enjoyable. "When I first applied, I thought I’d be here for maybe a couple of years, but they never told me to go, so I never went," Phelps said. "I’m here until they wise up and kick me out … I really like it."

Prior to working in data-processing, Phelps forged a career in retailing. "I ended up managing about five departments before ‘retiring,’" Phelps said. She found work at Garfinkel’s in Washington, D.C. when she and her husband moved away from the Bay Area. "I was hired on the spot," Phelps said. "I got to meet all the important people who shopped there. The area I worked in was like the ‘debutante shop.’" Phelps recalls on instance in which she met First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt, and was struck by her charm. "She is, beyond a doubt, the most gracious person I’ve ever come in contact with," Phelps said. "She just had that something … I admired her for that quality … I think it was an innate quality, not something that was fake or acquired."

Though Phelps says she may not share the same quality, her peers certainly think highly of her. "She [Phelps] is a hard worker, detail orientated, tenacious, resourceful, bright, she’ll virtually stop everything at a moment’s notice and help someone," Paly secretary Jenny Stone said. "[She’s] just really interested in the welfare of our students … [she’ll] bend over backwards for the kids."