HOUSTON COUNTY, Ga. — Each year on the Friday before Thanksgiving, schools across the country take time to recognize the people who step into classrooms when teachers cannot be there.

National Substitute Teacher Day highlights the essential role substitutes play in keeping schools running — and in Houston County , one woman has made it her second career.

Marie Lewis has spent nearly three decades in Houston County classrooms . She began as a full-time educator and, after retiring, returned to work as a substitute teacher. Lewis said it's a job she has no plans to leave anytime soon.

“I'd love to do it until I'm 100 years old,” Lewis said.

Principal Dana Brock at Miller Elementary School said reliable substitutes like Lewis make a major impact.

“You can't expect for every teache

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