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Disclaimer

This episode includes a discussion of suicide and mental health. Please take care while listening, and feel free to pause or step away if you need to. If you or someone you know is struggling, you’re not alone, and support is available. You might consider reaching out to someone you trust or a support service in your area.

Introduction

This show is different from our usual. It is a tribute to a well-known and beloved international educator who died by suicide in May of 2024. His name was Allan Bredy. This show includes statements about Allan from his family, friends and co-workers who experienced many of the same aspects of Allan’s character that I did. I will be narrating, and I have inserted quotes from the celebration of his life as well as some recorded testimonials. Even if you didn't know Allan, I think there will be some impactful take-aways for you – on how to live fully, to lead with heart and to lift others up using all you’ve got.

Allan was born in New Jersey to Canadian parents and grew up in Germany, France, and Oklahoma. As a younger man, he was a wrestler, shoe salesman, oil rig derrick hand, and farm hand. He met Julie in an Anthropology class; they were engaged in 3 weeks and married in 6 months. They lived in Spokane, Washington, before Allan became principal of Port Angeles High School. In 2000, he and his family moved to Singapore, where he served as middle school principal at Singapore American School. He later became director of the Lincoln School in Nepal, then of the American Cooperative School in Tunisia, and then of the American School of Brasília in Brazil. Eventually, Allan and Julie returned to the farm on Lummi Island, Washington. In later years, he served as Interim Head at Dar es Salaam American School in Rabat, Morocco, and as a part-time administrator at The Index School in Washington. He was also an active member of Lummi Island Church and The Gathering Place.

Themes presented in this show: Allan as a Coach and Team Builder | Allan had a Warrior Code | Allan as a Defender and Protector | A Life Fully Lived | Allan’s Love of Music and Rituals | The Importance of Work, Purpose, and Courage to Allan | Family and Complexity

Thank you to Gabel, Anton and Julie Bredy for giving us permission to create this tribute to Allan and to use quotes from his Celebration of Life. We would also like to thank the following people who sent in recordings: Luke Davis | Mark Forgeron | Mick Cooper | Andy Donahue | Lesley Taite | Niva Shre

Support the show

Remember to access our Educators Going Global website for more information and consider joining our Patreon community at patreon/educatorsgoingglobal!

Email us with comments or suggestions at educatorsgoingglobal@gmail.com

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Listen on your favorite podcast app: connect from our share page.

Music: YouTube. (2022). Acoustic Guitar | Folk | No copyright | 2022❤️. YouTube. Retrieved October 11, 2022, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YOEmg_6i7jA.

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Have you ever paused to reflect on your life as an international educator? What lessons have you learned so far both in the classroom and from your experiences living overseas? Whether or not you have, you are sure to gain some insights and ideas from this second conversation with the wise, thoughtful, über-intentional David Carpenter as he reflects on his life, experiences, and “lessons learned” in his extensive foray into international education.

David is a retired international educator who started his career in 1990. He worked at ten international schools and finished up his career in SE Asia. David partnered with Jeff Utecht on the Shifting Our Schools podcast and with Mark Hofer on the EdTech Co-Op podcast. David now works with Audrey Forgeron on the Educators Going Global Learning Hub and Podcast. David is enjoying his nomadic retirement with lots of art, adventure and travel. He hopes to one day become a grandfather.

Guiding question:: “What are some of your lessons learned as an international educator?”

Topics covered:

• Library and Technology Programming
• AI
• Wellness Program Development
• Travel
• Retirement
• Big Life Takeaways

Resources shared in this episode:

A Guide for Leaving International Education - Blog post

David’s Portfolio

Lessons Learned - David’s blog

Wellness@ES - David’s integrative approach of wellness into the elementary school.

Supporting Episodes:

Caroline Makepeace on International Family Life and Travel - Episode 60

Patrick Green on Digital Wellness - Episode 92

The Pivot: Life After International Teaching on The International Schools Podcast - Episode 164

David's Contact Information:

Instagram: @clubcarp15 | LinkedIn

Recorded November 24t

Support the show

Remember to access our Educators Going Global website for more information and consider joining our Patreon community at patreon/educatorsgoingglobal!

Email us with comments or suggestions at educatorsgoingglobal@gmail.com

Follow us on LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram or YouTube.

Listen on your favorite podcast app: connect from our share page.

Music: YouTube. (2022). Acoustic Guitar | Folk | No copyright | 2022❤️. YouTube. Retrieved October 11, 2022, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YOEmg_6i7jA.

Text us with topic or guest suggestions!

When was the last time you paused to reflect on your life as an international educator? What lessons have you learned so far both in the classroom and from your experiences living overseas?

Whether or not you have taken the time to look back on your overseas teaching life so far, you are sure to gain some insights and ideas from this, the first episode of my two-part conversation with the wise, thoughtful, über-intentional David Carpenter as he reflects on his life, experiences, and “lessons learned” in his extensive foray into international education.

David is a retired international educator who started his overseas career in 1990. He worked at several international schools before finishing up his career in SE Asia. David partnered with Jeff Utecht to start the Shifting Our Schools podcast and with Mark Hofer to start the EdTech Co-Op podcast. David now works with Audrey Forgeron to co-publish the Educators Going Global Learning Hub and Podcast. David continues to live internationally enjoying his retirement with lots of art, adventure and travel. His biggest hope is to one day become a grandfather.

Our guiding question for this show was: “What are some of your lessons learned as an international educator?”

Some of the topics covered include:

• Methods and tools to reflect and document one’s learning
• Recruiting
• Transitions
• Raising Children Overseas
• Followership and Leadership
• Instruction and PD

Resources shared in this episode:

David shares so many resources and related episodes that we've exceeded the character limit here! So we've created this Google Doc with all of his helpful suggestions. Access it at this link. It is well worth the extra click!

David's Contact Information:

Instagram: @clubcarp15

LinkedIn

This episode was recorded on November 24th, 2025.

Categories: School Life | PD | Parenting | Recruiting | Pedagogy | Followership

Support the show

Remember to access our Educators Going Global website for more information and consider joining our Patreon community at patreon/educatorsgoingglobal!

Email us with comments or suggestions at educatorsgoingglobal@gmail.com

Follow us on LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram or YouTube.

Listen on your favorite podcast app: connect from our share page.

Music: YouTube. (2022). Acoustic Guitar | Folk | No copyright | 2022❤️. YouTube. Retrieved October 11, 2022, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YOEmg_6i7jA.