The educational community of Lanzarote and the Yaiza City Council bid farewell to teacher Jaime Quesada Martín, who has retired after 37 years of service to teaching, 35 of them as director of the Playa Blanca school. The event took place on Saturday at the Arrecife Gran Hotel.
Teachers, students, educational inspectors and politicians praised the teacher, born in Yaiza. "Approachable, rigorous in his work, dedicated, committed, good humor and an excellent colleague," were just some of the words expressed by people who were by his side on a daily basis.
Jaime Quesada, moved by the surprise tribute and the unexpected presence of his two children, thanked everyone for their support and promised to remain active "with one or two projects", among which, of course, is the continuation of his literary production. Jaime Quesada stands out for writing poems and prose. Moreover, the event included the irruption of a southern parranda that sang seguidillas of his authorship.
The new director of the Playa Blanca school, María Trinidad Pérez, on behalf of the faculty, the councilors of Yaiza, Manuela Martín and Roque Herrera, representing the City Council, and co-workers presented gifts to the "school teacher", as Jaime Quesada has always felt, according to the City Council in a statement.
Andrés Gutiérrez, secretary of the center, projected an audiovisual with curious images of Jaime's passage through the Playa Blanca school since his arrival in 1978, in the old house in the town where the center operated, until its transfer in 1991 to the current facilities. In 1978, Playa Blanca had 14 students and this January Jaime Quesada leaves the school with nearly 800 students.
The honoree received the Viera y Clavijo medal in 2005, a distinction awarded by the Government of the Canary Islands by virtue of his merits as a teacher. Jaime Quesada Martín began his work in 1975, after obtaining a notable qualification at the "López Botas" Normal School in Las Palmas de Gran Canaria. The former director of CEIP Playa Blanca is the author of several projects aimed at the Reading Animation Program and his stories have been used as working material in centers in Lanzarote.
"Undisputed witness of the evolution of the south of the island"
The mayor of Yaiza, Gladys Acuña, praised the work of Jaime Quesada, "an undisputed witness of the evolution of the south of the Island, therefore, of the development and its consequences: the demographic explosion and multiculturalism." "The teacher, as director of the school, focused on his basic mission of teaching and coordinating the work of the faculty, also had to assume administrative tasks," as recalled by the first mayor.
However, these new responsibilities never diverted him from his true vocation. "He continued at the blackboard in front of his students, continued listening to their problems and concerns, helped fellow professionals, patiently attended to mothers and fathers and was determined to improve the academic level of the school and its infrastructure," said the mayor.
"The teachers will remember him, his students, those he called by their own name in the courtyard even though a few became hundreds, will not forget him either. In short, the municipality of Yaiza, the educational community of Lanzarote and the institutions recognize so many years of dedication in the classrooms and now hope to continue enjoying his literary creation," Acuña insisted.
