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Otto was a kind man with the respect of all By David Lea OAKVILLE BEAVER STAFF He was the storyteller, grandfather, kind-hearted listener and more. Staff and students at Oakville's Rotherglen School are mourning the loss of beloved teacher Don Otto, 78, who died suddenly on Dec. 6. Otto's career in education spanned more than 50 years including a decade teaching the students of Rotherglen. Students at the school described Otto, who served as a substitute teacher even after his retirement, as the kind of teacher they hoped they would get, stating a day with him was sure to be fun. "He was always there if you needed help. If you had a question you could ask him anything," said Mitchell Peberdy, 13. "I'm glad I got to meet him and know him at all. He was kind of like a grandfather to me." Many other students shared similar sentiments. "Mr. Otto was like the best substitute teacher ever. Everyone liked having him around. He was pleasant. He always had a smile on his face," said Eric Broadfoot, 13. "He had great stories to tell. He taught us to draw ships and stuff like that. He told us about his family and their experience during the war." Besides teaching, Otto also headed the school's model club and would regale students with stories about the ships, planes and tanks they would piece together. A teacher and history buff, Otto was expert at getting students interested in subjects like Vimy Ridge, the Second World War and the Titanic. Tanya Sharma, 13, said it was strangely appropriate Otto passed away on the 70th anniversary of the attack on Pearl Harbour as he had taught Rotherglen's students so much about it. One story Otto told, which seemed to be foremost in the minds of his students, was The Boy in the Striped Pajamas. The book, written by John Boyne, is set during the Holocaust and tells the story from the point of view of an eight-year-old German boy whose father is the commandant of Auschwitz. Lonely in the surroundings he has been moved to and naïve about what is going on there, the boy makes friends with a Jewish boy on the other side of a barbed wire fence. "He would always tell us so many stories. He had like 300 or more stories he would tell us about life or war or about everyday things." Rotherglen's students showed the impact Otto had on their lives by wallpapering entire sections of the school's foyer with messages and posters the day after his death. Some of these messages called Otto a true role model, others said they would never forget the stories he told them or how he would say `Hello' as he passed them in a hallway. Others said he would be deeply missed and wished him a peaceful rest. Staff at Rotherglen said as a testament to Otto's character, more than 500 people attended his funeral, including students, past and present. "We were amazed to see how many students came back to honour him. Some of these students are in university now," said Laura Crumb, head of Rotherglen School. "It was a really nice feeling to see that and it was a nice celebration of his life." Crumb and assistant-head of school Patrick Lanigan remember Otto as the banjo and ukulele player, the lover of classic cars, but mostly as a man whose kindness was unparalleled. "Everyone respected him, from parents to teachers to every student from Grade 1 all the way up to Grade 8," said Crumb. "He just gave to everyone so they naturally gave back to him." "If you talk to the students, the word that comes up is `kind'. He was just one of the kindest people you'll ever know," said Lanigan. All of these kind wishes did not go unnoticed. "Our family wishes to thank you for the outpouring of affection and the numerous tributes afforded to our husband and father over the past ten days. We are deeply touched that at the end of a long, successful career, that he found in your school community, the gentlest of harbours," wrote Otto's family in an e-mail to Rotherglen. "Over five hundred people attended the service; the Glen Oaks director told us the centre had never accommodated such a (large) number of f people, except once before, when a celebrity had been memorialized there. Don would have been embarrassed to think of himself as a celebrity, but he would have been humbly pleased nevertheless." 5 · Thursday, December 22, 2011 OAKVILLE BEAVER · www.insideHALTON.com Don Otto The boys find they have the same birthday and are basically the same despite being born into vastly different circumstances. "When he told us that story I almost cried at the end because it is just so sad," said Julia Castagner, 13. "I'm going to miss Mr. Otto a lot because he was a really good teacher." Other students, like Nicole Mastantuono, 13, remember the pride Otto took in his work and the school. "Whenever he came in to substitute he was always wearing our Rotherglen red vest and our tie... he would always wear it," she said. IS S NOW NO N OW O W SELLING DIRECT TO THE PUBLIC LEISURE LEIS LEIS EIS SURE SURE URE E INDUSTRIES IN IND NDUSTRIES N ND DUS DUST STRIE ST TRIES RI IES ES FACTORY FA ACT CTO C TOR TO ORY OUTLET OUT OUT TLET TL LET BOXING WEEK SALE STARTS TODAY PUBLIC AUCTION CUSTOMS EX-SEIZED HIGH VALUE V DIAMONDS SEIZURE NO. CS4971-07-0926 High value diamonds seized at Airport by virtue of section 12 and 110 of the Customs Act. All importation duties and taxes have been paid. 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