"I look in the mirror these days and think, gee. But I still feel like a youthful teacher on the inside," Mrs King, who will retire later this month at the end of term three, said.
The 66-year-old's teaching career began in the outback mining town of Broken Hill, Australia.
It was hours from anywhere, the average rainfall was only 23cm a year and summer temperatures reached well over 40degC, but Mrs King said she found many things to love about the place.
She said it was a "wonderful" place, not just because she was teaching at the largest primary school in New South Wales outside of Sydney, but because it was where she met her Kiwi husband, miner Ron, and had her first child.
Later, the couple moved to Darwin, where Mrs King taught at Marrara Christian School, which had recently been rebuilt following Cyclone Tracy.
"I personally found it very difficult to live there, because of the heat and humidity.
"It was like living in a steamy bathroom all of the time.
"So I was pleased when Ron and I moved back to his home town, here in Dunedin, where there are hot and cold seasons."
Mrs King returned to study part time, taking an external master's degree in educational studies through the National Institute for Christian Education in Sydney.
At the same time, she taught at the former Ocean View School, Liberton Christian School and St Bernadette's before establishing her own school - the Amana Christian School in Mosgiel.
"I was driving up from Henley and I looked across at Mosgiel, and for some reason I thought, there needs to be a Christian school in Mosgiel.
"It was a calling. I shared my thought with Ron and he said if we didn't do it, it wouldn't happen."
In 2001, her dream came to fruition when the school opened its doors.
But after four years, she decided it was time to retire - for the first time.
"I would have been happy to remain retired, but circumstances dictated that I come back for a further session.
"The staff at the school were inexperienced and I was needed to fill a gap and provide some training and guidance."
Mrs King has never drawn a wage or salary for her work at the school.
"My work has been voluntary. I have often joked with staff, that if they didn't like my work, they could cut my pay."
Eleven years after the school was opened, Mrs King said it was in "good heart" and capable of looking after itself, and she was now ready to "let it go".
"It's like a child going off to school for the first time.
"It's time to retire.
"This time, it will stick," she promised.
In her retirement, she hoped to travel more, spend time with family and friends, and write a sequel to her book Woolligulli - a collection of humorous tales which are based on her experiences.
However, she said complete retirement was out of the question.
She would continue to work at the Amana Christian Early Learning Centre, and the Light and Hope Conference Centre.
When asked what she would miss most about her career, she quipped: "The unpredictability of the day."
