But she’s not a teacher.

She’s not an administrator.

And she’s definitely not on the payroll.

Mrs Thomson is simply a parent who is dedicated to the school and its students.

Since her daughter Abby enrolled in kindergarten five years ago, Mrs Thomson has had a permanent place on the school’s Parents and Citizens Association (P&C) and this year took on the presidency.

She was part of the hot lunch and canteen roster, helped out in the classroom and even helped to build fences when soccer balls and footballs were escaping the school yard and rolling onto the road.

Most importantly, Mrs Thomson leads the organisation of the school’s major fundraiser, the Monster Cracker Night that this year attracted 1100 people.

So it was appropriate the event was used to announce that Mrs Thomson was NSW Education Department Primary Schools Parent of the Year for the school zone.

The zone’s education director Karen Jones made a presentation, but it was a blur for Mrs Thomson.

“When Karen Jones gave me the award I didn’t hear a word she said because I was so embarrassed,” she said.

“There are hundreds of parents out there who do a lot of work for their children’s schools, particularly at Mt Kanwary.

‘We have a really good P&C and I think all our parents are parents of the year.”

The Public School Parent of the Year Award was introduced in 2003 to acknowledge the contribution of parents to the public school community.

This year there were 49 awards presented across 10 Department of Education and Training regions.

Ms Thomson was the only recipient in the zone.

The school is not her only community project.

She is involved in the resurrection of Woodville Hall and is candidate for Port Stephens Council.

“I’m passionate about community spirit,” she said.

“And because the kids can see what I’m doing, they do positive things too.”