There are numerous individuals who have positively influenced my life but the one who led to a dramatic change in my future prospects personally and professionally was Mr. Eli Gorelick of Livingston High School. He was my AP Spanish teacher 1970-73. He was born in Cuba of Sephardic Jews who had lived in Salonika and Constantinople. So his people were Ladino-speaking, originally. He was a Korean War veteran and passionate for music, literature, plays and sports. He transformed me from a mediocre Spanish student more focused on Latin and history than Spanish. He did it by incorporating authentic Spanish culture via music, sports, movies, and cuisine. I was fascinated by the history of Spain including the Arab conquest and Jewish Spain during the Convivencia. It was he who recommended the (then) wonderful and challenging University of Northern Iowa program in Spanish. I was a strong AP Spanish student but Mr. Gorelick felt there was no substitute for living and studying in Spain to gain authentic Spanish fluency. So I did and it changed my life. Spanish (along with typing and authentic bilingualism) ) was my one real expertise and it always helped me get job opportunities. Spanish was and is a very practical language second only to English. Along the way, I married a Spanish woman. We have three children and so far four grandchildren. All of them are bilingual and native Spanish speakers. From my early years, I realized what it took to cultivate children who were authentically bilingual (indeed potentially multilingual). We made many sacrifices but I believe it has paid off and will pay off. Two of our children are teachers (one is a k-6 Dual Immersion teacher and another is a high school AP Spanish teacher as well as a tutor/mentor for a professional Sports team. When he interviewed for his job the people were astonished at his total fluency in Spanish and his complete command of sports and particularly baseball terminology. The roots of that fluency were with Mr. Gorelick who had us read EL DIARIO sports page in Spanish and listen to Buck Canel broadcast Yankee games and the World Series. Mr. Gorelick is no longer with us but I will never forget him and he is a great example of how a teacher can change lives for the better.
Spirit of Cecilia 