Jax Beach kindergarten teacher gets memorable end-of-year video call

Jaguars defensive end Josh Allen made surprise appearance for class

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Teachers all around the country are trying to find ways to make this year a memorable one for their students. Every so often, things become memorable for the teacher.

At Jacksonville Beach Elementary, parents of a kindergartner made some calls to pull a surprise for their child’s teacher, Lori Cheanvechai.

There are a couple of things you have to know about Cheanvechai.

First, she’s a big sports fan. Second, she’s a huge fan of the University of Kentucky. So, when Cheanvechai was told that the final virtual meeting of the year with her students was going to have a special guest, she was, to say the least, excited when it turned out to be Jaguars’ defensive end Josh Allen.

Allen, who made the Pro Bowl as a rookie, starred at Kentucky. Imagine Cheanvechai’s surprise when Allen popped onto the screen.

“Josh Allen is my favorite player. I love them all. I’m a big Minshew fan. I love Calais Campbell, I’m so sad that he’s gone,” Cheanvechai said. “But I’m a big, huge Josh Allen fan because I watched him at UK and I’ve been so excited to see him play here.”

Allen spent half an hour answering questions from the class on its last day of school. They asked him the kind of questions that only kindergartners ask.

Is football hard?

What’s your favorite team to play against?

Do you remember YOUR kindergarten teacher?

And when asked if he had a pet … he showed them his dog Smokey.

It was quite a way to end an unusual school year.

“I was really impressed with how he took the time to interact with every child that came up with a question,” Cheanvechai said. “It did my heart a lot of good to know that he was giving back in a way that he didn’t have to.”

The kicker — the entire class knew that Allen was going to be on the video conference and they all kept the secret from their teacher.

Somehow.