Patricia Martinez   By Coco Bikadoroff Patricia Martinez taught Spanish in her home town in Mexico. She began teaching in Vancouver in 1997 and has since taught out of her Kerrisdale village office since 2000. She came upon her Kerrisdale location while she was pregnant with her first child and shopping for baby clothes! There was an infant store in an old office building on 41st called ‘Small Peas’ which she went to and found that the woman there was moving.  She grabbed the opportunity to rent the office and she is still there today. Patricia is a lovely, vibrant woman with a flare for life! She always has a smile to give. She loves being a part of the close knit community of the Kerrisdale village and how all the merchants and regulars know each other. She also loves that she can walk down the street and recognize her students from as far back as 12 years. She shares the space with other teachers, when there wasn’t enough room for all the classes, she would sometimes teach in the coffee shop (Legato) and also at the jungle cafe which the only Mexican restaurant in the village. She used to advertise in Georgia straight before the internet, but she likes the community concept of advertising better.  Along with her partner Nora, they would participate in the Kerrisdale carnival days by creating a huge rainbow balloon and raffle off free lessons. Patricia’s students range from 4-80 years old. She loves teaching and can’t see herself changing careers. Her biggest influence in her life came from her father who was her social science teacher in high school. Her Grandmother and Great Aunt were also teachers. You can tell she has had a loving bond with her family...

Interviewed and written by Queenie Lee Dylan Cramer has been teaching saxophone in Kerrisdale Community Centre for 19 years. He is also a recording artist who has received worldwide acclaim. What is the key for his success? It is his talent, but also his “honesty” with his students and “passion” for his job. Dylan’s success did not come easily. He had gone through difficult times when he was young. The death of his father when he was 13 was the reason he started connecting to his saxophone. “It was a way to escape.” Dylan recalled. However, his way of escape brought him two of the most influential people in his life. He went to LA to study with Sonny Criss who became like a second father to Dylan. “It was like finding my father again.” Dylan described. But heartbreakingly, his second father left him just like his biological father. They both committed suicides.  With his days filled with grief, Phil Sobel was the one who put Dylan back together. “Every death brought in a birth” Dylan told me. Yes, the death of his father gave birth to his passion for saxophone and his attachment with his second father Sonny and the death of Sonny brought in the birth of his other mentor Phil Sobel. “I am very fortunate. Some people never bump into anybody meaningful in their life.” Dylan said. Success never came easily. The success Dylan has today is credited to his hard work and talent, but to him, it is credited to all the meaningful people in his life. The influence his two mentors had on him transfers to how he sees his music career and education today. Being a teacher is not a job for Dylan Cramer. He specifically said to me “it’s...

“My Wishes and Dreams” by Grade One French Immersion Students (Teacher Madame K) at Kerrisdale Elementary Our children are born natural artists!  All pictures are amazing, different and reflect our children’s vision of the world and future. Education is about helping children who are capable of self-reflection and self-expression! Bravo! Our teachers and children! ‘Whatever you can dream, begin to do it. Boldness has the power and magic in it.’ Goethe...

Ms. Marilyn Teresa Yee is the School Counsellor for Kerrisdale Elementary, whom I, through multiple courtship, convinced to contribute a piece of wisdom to this issue. As Marilyn likes to say, “We all have the capacity to continue to give love and echo life.” ~ The Editor-in-Chief   Written and Photographed by  COCO BIKADOROFF   Q. How long have you served for Kerrisdale Elementary?  A. This will be my 5th year. Q. During your 5 years of working at KE, what has attracted you to staying with serving at KE? A. The main thing is the creative and professional staff I work with. For a school this size, the dedication to learning is fantastic. Everyone gets along so well. The teachers are very inspiring to me. I love being in a dual track school; I love having the French and the English. It just really stretches your creativity. Q. Do you speak French as well? A. I don’t, I speak enough to get by with the kindergartens and grade one’s but I understand a lot more. Q. Do you have any special training/experience that has prepared you to be a better counsellor?  A. Well all of us are teachers, all the counsellors are teachers.  I have a Masters degree in counselling Psychology.  An interesting sidetrack is that I also have a Diploma in Theology, because I always had a whole lot of questions about the meaning of life, why do people suffer, and how do they find happiness.   Q. Please tell us about any special projects that you’re currently working on. A. The most current project I’m working on is to understand something called ‘Social Thinking’ and it’s the work of Michelle Garcia Winner from San Jose California.  She started working with autistic children and how to...