Oxford Elementary School is losing its entire support staff.

But don’t worry, there are no budget cuts or pink slips involved. They’re all leaving of their own accord.

Secretary Donna Weis, Media Paraprofessional Maureen Kiplinger and Special Education Paraprofessional Peggy Kay are retiring.

It’s a bittersweet time for these three women as they’re excited to embark on new chapters in their lives, but they’re also going to sorely miss their days at OES.

“It’s been a fun and a wild ride at times,” said Weis, who spent 15 of her 18 years with the district at the school on Pontiac St.

“Every single day is different,” said Kiplinger, who spent 22 years with the district, 21 of which were at OES.

As can be expected, they will miss helping students and being there for them on a daily basis.

“It’s all about the kids,” Kiplinger said. “They keep us young. They keep us happy.”

Kiplinger will “never forget” what it was like to see “the lightbulb go on” whenever a student she was helping understood a math problem or how “their faces (would) light up” whenever she was able to procure that special library book they requested.

“Our job, for the most part, is fun,” Weis said. “We’re around children. How could it not be (fun)? . . . I think if any of us had to go sit in a cubicle and work (there) all day, we’d go crazy.”

Weis will always remember with fondness how grateful the students were whenever she helped them call their parents or fixed their “boo-boos.”

“For the most part, their needs are simple,” she said. “When they come to me, they look at a Band-Aid or an ice bag like it’s gold.”

What stands out about the students in Kay’s mind is how they’re “so confident.”

“They can get up in front of a group of people (and report on what they’ve learned) after doing their research,” said Kay, who’s spent five of her 23 years in education at OES. “I could never do that. They impress me.”

Kay noted working with kids has made her “more patient with people” in general.

“I greet people more. I say hello more. I try and smile more because it might be the only smile they get during the day,” she said.

In addition to the students, these women are going to miss the staff members who have become their friends and family.

“We all cry together, we laugh together, we joke together, we take care of the kids together,” Kiplinger said.

Weis said when Peter, her husband of 35 years, lost his battle with cancer last year, “everybody in my OES family . . . rallied to help me through it.”

“Not everybody has that at their place of employment,” she said. “These people took care of me.”

Kay has worked for a total of six school districts in three states and the thing that sticks out most in her mind about OES is how everyone is “so welcoming here.”

“It’s like a home,” she said. “I’m glad I got to end my career here. Thanks for making me part of your family.”

Weis noted how much she enjoyed watching staff members get married and build their families. She recalled one year, there were seven teachers pregnant at the same time.

“Every year (over the last decade), we had someone expecting until this year,” she said.

To the next three people who take over their jobs, the women offered some advice.

“Don’t stress,” Kay said.

“Take a deep breath and stay calm,” Weis said.

“Enjoy the ride. Enjoy the kids. It’s a great time,” Kiplinger said.

Each lady has her own plans for retirement.

Weis wants to “rest, relax and travel a little bit.” She plans to visit family in South Carolina and take a trip to Nashville, Tennessee with her son. She also wants to spend more time with her 2-year-old grandson, Miles.

Kiplinger is eagerly awaiting the birth of her first grandchild, a baby girl, in September. She and Dan, her husband of 36 years, also plan to continue their mission to ride a tandem bicycle in all 50 states.

“We have 22 done,” Kiplinger said.

As for Kay, she and her husband of 41 years, Mark, plan to convert their cottage on Au Sable Lake, near West Branch, into a home and move there. She also wants to spend more time with her four grandchildren and visit her sister-in-law’s farm in Montana.