After 27 years of riding in his golf cart, making sure Poway’s campus is clean, organized, and everything is running smoothly, Head Custodian Pete Cypher has decided to retire this year…
Cypher knows the ins-and-outs of Poway High, and he believes it will be challenging for the admin to find a replacement who possesses the same skills and knowledge he does. He does not have an exact retirement date set because he has some tasks to finish before he decides.
Throughout his years at Poway, Cypher has seen many trends. In his beginning years, he remembers the custodians spending close to two hours just working on outside cleaning up trash on campus before even starting on the classrooms.
While some might think that students’ care for the campus has gotten worse, he thinks differently.
“It’s not quite so bad now. It has really gone better, surprisingly. You look at campus and think, ‘Oh my god, it looks like crap,’ I’m looking at the campus going ‘Wow, we’ve come a long way,’” Cypher said.
He has dedicated his life to the students at Poway to make sure they have a good campus and everything they need.
He has even taken time away from his own family to put Poway’s needs first.
While he knows there can be improvements made to campus, and he does not enjoy having to deal with constant vandalism, clogged toilets, and broken bathroom fixtures, getting to see students walk at graduation makes it worth it.
“Poway High is my home. I’ve spent half of my life here, so this is my home, and I’m more comfortable here than I am sometimes at my own home,” Cypher said.
Sharon Farmer has worked with Cypher since 1996, when they both worked at Mesa Verde Middle School, and then she joined him at Poway. She enjoys his perspective on things. To some, he may come off as over-serious, but this is just part of his quirky sense of humor, one of Farmer’s favorite memories of him. She expresses Cypher’s retirement as devastating and sad.
She also appreciates that he sticks to the book. “Pete is a stickler for rules; he knows the rules, he knows the ED code, he stands by the rules,” Farmer said.
“He has pointed out that a cypher is a “keeper,” and Pete Cypher has been the keeper of Poway’s facilities and institutional knowledge. Whoever follows him will have a big job to fill,” English teacher and long-time colleague TeriAnne Libby said.
Additionally, another long-time co-worker, Economics and History teacher David White, expresses how much Cypher truly does for Poway.
“Ever since I’ve been here for the last 30 years, Mr. Cypher has been the go-to individual to get things fixed and done on campus; now I have no clue who I’m going to go to,” White said.
Overall, for Cypher, it has been an enjoyable ride here at Poway. When does retires, Cypher plans on relaxing on his porch, drinking coffee while watching the birds. He also looks forward to spending some time at his house in Pennsylvania with his wife.
