MOSSEL BAY NEWS - A number of long-serving education heavyweights in the Mossel Bay area are retiring, all at once.
They are respected for their decades of experience and contributions to schools here and will be missed greatly.
They are the principals of Hillcrest Secondary School, Ivan Kroneberg; Sao Bras High, David Groenewald; Great Brak Secondary, Desmond Speelman; and Milkwood Primary, Van Wyk Dames.
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School principals, educationists retire
Business
Besides them, Herbertsdale Primary principal Daniël Tintinger is resigning and leaving teaching to start his own business.
Dames will be the principal of King's College at Outeniquasbosch, in the Hartenbos area, next year.
Also retiring are the Education Department's Dr Beatrice Treurnicht, who was a learning support adviser for the area and Nicole Steyn, one of the administrative staff in the office of the Education Department's circuit two (Mossel Bay area) manager, Rozelle Smith-Neethling.
Honoured
The principals and officials were honoured at a special farewell ceremony on 23 October at Global Academy of Education, in Heiderand, Mossel Bay.
At the function, the retiring principals were joined by deputy principals and Education officials to celebrate their years of commitment.
Dames and Steyn were unable to attend.
The event included a moving tribute from Jewel Jonkers, the director for the Education Department's Eden and Central Karoo Education District (ECKED), who thanked the educationists for their outstanding contributions.
Served
Using words from Matthew 25:23 - "Well done, good and faithful servant" - as a reference, Jonkers emphasised how the retirees had served their communities well and now could reap the rewards of a job well done.
Treurnicht, Groenewald, Kroneberg, Speelman and Tintinger expressed their heartfelt thanks to their colleagues and the Western Cape Education Department for their support and assistance over the years.
'New boss'
Kroneberg remarked with humour: “We principals will now have a new boss - our wife - whose rules we’ll have to obey. The roles have now switched."
Groenewald, reflecting on his long career, admitted he already missed the school environment, a sentiment echoed by the other retirees, who expressed their gratitude and nostalgia.
Adding a festive touch to the event, Peter Neethling, the deputy principal of Ridgeview Primary, accompanied popular singer Marsha Lombard on the piano as attendees sang Christmas carols.
Treurnicht, known for her lasting impact as a learning support adviser, said that while she was stepping down from her role, she would continue to work part-time with UNISA, contributing to the education field in a new capacity.
Healthy competition
Tintinger, who served the Western Cape Education Department for 15 years and began his teaching career in the Northern Cape, mentioned his plans to start his own business, and Kroneberg, with 38 years of service, reflected on the healthy competition between high schools and the invaluable teamwork he had enjoyed with his colleagues.
Speelman, principal of Great Brak Secondary, said that because of this teamwork and competition between the high schools, he would be at the school early on 16 January when the matric results were released.
Gratitude was expressed to Global Academy of Education for making a venue available for the function as well as for the Education circuit two "senior leadership meetings" for 2024, fostering a collaborative environment for education leaders.
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