She touched the lives of many students at LT Ball

With each dish she prepared, Tammy Green scooped up more than just a healthy meal. For 16 years, you could find Green in the kitchen of LT Ball, doing what she did best: serving the students. “She really loved the kids,” her husband, Tom Green, expressed. Tammy will be deeply missed in the community, but she left a sweet taste in the lives of all she encountered. After an 18-month battle with ovarian cancer, Tammy passed away, leaving her husband, children, and so many kids she claimed as her own. Tom shared Tammy’s love for Jesus. You can’t lose to the evil of this world when you believe in eternal life through Jesus Christ, and Tammy surely did.

Managing the kitchen was fun for Tammy, and she made it a special place to come to for staff and students alike. Principal Mike Vagedes recalls all the excitement Green brought to the cafeteria: She “decorated the cafeteria line and dressed up for whatever the theme may have been. There were times that she would even wear a colorful wig to match the occasion. She set up various contests for the students. She had groups of students sample new menu items before putting new items on the menu. She made special meals for the students during the holidays, i.e. Thanksgiving Lunch, green apple sauce on St. Patrick’s Day, Christmas Cookies (sprinkled sugar cookies), etc.”

Over the years, regulations have changed many times. Green adapted to the requirements, facing each hurdle head on while still managing to make eating healthy and fulfilling. “My wife loved Tab-A-Pullooza,” Tom stated. This is a name she called for rallying the LT Ball students to collect aluminum pop tops for the Ronald McDonald’s House. “Every year, the collection weighed in close to 200-250 pounds, but one year we hauled 600 pounds of tabs down to the Ronald McDonald house. Tammy was really proud,” Green’s husband recalled. The tabs brought in by the entire community powered the utility bill for the Ronald McDonald House for a year and it delighted Tammy that LT Ball played a part.

Co-worker and friend Diana Johnston relished many special memories working beside Green in her 16 years in the school kitchen. “She was a wonderful person, and she became friends with everyone really. At Christmas, she did an Elf on the Shelf, and the kids really loved it.”

Green was a big supporter of the American Cancer Society and was very influential in making sure the LT Ball community took a part in Breast Cancer Awareness Month and contributed to the Pink Ribbon Girls.

Over the years, Green tried her hand in many crafts and hobbies. Tom expressed just how creative his wife was. “We had two daughters and through a love for sewing, Tammy made dresses for them. She was published in the ‘Sew Beautiful’ Magazine.” Besides sewing, Tammy made very detailed Reborn baby dolls. She sold many and also gave some away for gifts.

When retirement came, Tammy terribly missed the kids in the cafeteria. She and her husband had looked forward to traveling together. When cancer took the reins on their plans, Tom and Tammy settled into the detour and focused on getting the best care plan together. When Tammy realized that recovery wasn’t in her future, she continued to think of others above herself. She told her husband that when she passed, she wanted to share the last few dolls she had made. With neighbors having two little girls that reminded her of their own, she wanted them to have the dolls, as well as some sent to children with special needs.

Tammy came into Tipp City to plan menus and serve students meals. However, she did so much more. She scooped smiles, fried up fun, and stirred up excitement for serving the community. Tammy didn’t just manage the LT Ball kitchen for 16 years, she touched lives. The taste she simmered up for the entire community will linger for many years to come.