Bill Gates Credits Elementary School Librarian For Changing His Life

Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates shared a message of thanks for the school librarian at Seattle’s View Ridge Elementary, which he attended, to mark World Teachers Day.

What Happened: The billionaire said he was thinking about Blanche Caffiere on Oct. 6 —  a day marked to commemorate the 1966 signing of the UNESCO/ILO recommendation concerning the status of teachers.

Gates said Caffiere was the school librarian when he was 9 years old and took him “under her wing and taught me that my love of reading was a strength. To this day, I think about how she changed my life.”

This #WorldTeachersDay, I’m thinking about Mrs. Caffiere. She was the school librarian at Seattle’s View Ridge Elementary. When I was 9 years old, she took me under her wing and taught me that my love of reading was a strength. To this day, I think about how she changed my life. pic.twitter.com/oucGBP7n0L

— Bill Gates (@BillGates) October 5, 2022

See Also: How To Buy Microsoft (MSFT) Shares

Why It Matters: This is not the first time Gates has written about his school librarian. 

The philanthropist said in a blog post dating back to Aug. 2016, “Mrs. Caffiere took me under her wing and helped make it okay for me to be a messy, nerdy boy who was reading lots of books,” wrote Gates at the time.

Caffiere, a bestselling author herself, died at the age of 100 in Nov. 2006 — a month after celebrating her centenary, reported The Seattle Times.

She reportedly wrote stories about her life which included an anecdote about Gates. 

Caffiere worked as a substitute teacher even after retiring well into her 70s, according to her daughter Jill Andrews, according to the Times.

This week, Gates also expressed his admiration for Nelson Mandela for his fight against HIV/AIDs.

Read Next: Bill Gates Doesn't Want To Be Rich Anymore: 'I Will Move Down And Eventually Off Of The List Of The World's Richest People'