By Ron Jensen, U.K. bureau

RAF MILDENHALL, England — Students at Lakenheath Middle School are writing personal messages and poems and adding drawings to a "remembrance book" this week to honor longtime host-nation teacher Kevan Boyden, who died at his home Friday.

"He made a difference," said Noni Hoag, assistant principal at the school on RAF Feltwell. "To me, it’s a wonderful thing to make a difference in people’s lives, and he did that for many."

Boyden was born Feb. 12, 1948. He became the host-nation teacher at Feltwell on Jan. 1, 1979. In that capacity, he planned, coordinated and led hundreds of field trips for thousands of U.S. children. A memorial service will be at the school gymnasium May 2.

Hoag said Boyden had a deep love of his homeland and was able to communicate that love to the students at the school.

"It’s hard to imagine all the memories he created for children," said Hoag, who had worked with Boyden since 1984.

Sixth-grade language arts teacher Deborah Drozdowski said Boyden was a teacher’s friend, too, planning field trips he would lead.

"I was doing some paperwork today and I thought: You know, I’ve never had to do this before; Kevan did it," she said Tuesday.

Boyden was involved in many successful projects, including Adventure Week, where children sailed boats, climbed cliffs and slithered through muddy caves. Hoag said he also was responsible for the success of the London Project, in which students made all the arrangements for a three-day trip to the city.

Boyden, who took his own life, earned a doctorate in philosophy from the University of East Anglia. He is survived by his wife, Jan, and children, Sarah and Matthew, of Mundford, England.

The family has asked that donations be made in his memory to the local Mundford Cricket Club, where he worked with young people for many years, a heart association or an organization promoting cancer research.