If we talk about the people who help children grow to become kind adults, teachers will make it to the top of the list. For many children, their teachers are their sources of inspiration. Students look up to them as their mentors.
While most students appreciate their teachers efforts. Only a few go the extra mile to thank them. Today’s story is about a group of students who did something extraordinary to make their math teacher feel special.
This heartwarming story, from Los Angeles, will light up your day in these stressful times when we mostly hear bad news.
It revolves around Julio Castro, a high school teacher who devoted most of his time to explaining complex mathematical Concepts to his students. Castro lived in his Santa Clarita apartment about two hours from his workplace. Eula High School boys division in the Pico Robertson, neighborhood commuting to and from school was no less than a struggle for Castro. Despite traveling for four hours daily Castro, never hesitated to show up at work on weekdays.
He would wake up at 4.30a.m and set out on his scooter to reach the Metro stop from there. He would ride a bus for about 90 minutes to arrive at the Jewish school. I wait another half hour or an hour said Castro about days when he would miss his bus. Amazingly, the tiresome commute never lowered his energy levels.
He was always ready to answer every question. His students had Joshua jirendash, a senior at the school said he made sure. I understood all the material by sitting down with me during his lunch breaks and sacrificing his time after school, where he could be getting to the bus stop going back home.
The devoted teacher also helped out children who didn’t belong to his class after spending the entire day working with his beloved students, whom he liked to call his kids. He would set out on his two-hour long journey home when Castro would step into his house at around 9 30 PM.
His children would be fast asleep because of the lengthy commute Castro missed the chance to spend quality time with his family, but he never complained.
However, his students were aware of his pain, so they decided to surprise him with something extraordinary. A group of students devised a plan to give back to their math teacher. They secretly started collecting donations to buy something for Castro. After months of collecting funds, the students raised about thirty thousand dollars and bought a 2019 Mazda cx-3 for Castro.
They believed it would help him save time while commuting to school. The students executed their plan on the second day of the school year. They pretended that there was an appreciation assembly for all teachers and send an invite to Castro. What he saw next was beyond his imagination as soon as he entered the meeting. His students led him to a dark blue hatchback waiting for him outside the school building.
It was hard for him to believe that his students had bought the car for him after raising money. He said, I feel surprised, I feel special. So thank you, my students. They are like my kids as well. All his life Castro taught his students to be grateful, no matter the circumstances, he taught them never to whine or complain because he believed there was always light at the end of the tunnel.
He added don’t do it because you’re waiting for a prize do it, because it comes from your heart when his students gifted the car to him, they knew he would radiate generosity to others around him and they were right.
Castro revealed that he would spend his spare time preparing his lesson plans after arriving at school early. He added then, on my way back, traffic is still bad, but I’ll be able to make it for dinner. Castro’s new car would make his commute easy and allow them to spend time with his children and girlfriend. He was beyond grateful to the students and said he had never expected them to make a special effort to ease his pain.
Castro’s unique story teaches us that being kind and generous never goes to waste. Instead, it comes back to us in some way.
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