A teacher in financial difficulty sold his car and his former students bought it for him: “We gave him a gift”

Financial problems encountered during pandemic led Brazilian professor to retire Marcelo Siqueira, 87, to sell his sweetheart Volkswagen beetle from 1972, a model known in Brazil as “Fusca”. What he never imagined was that the sale would bring a great tribute from his former students.

The moment to say goodbye to the vehicle turned out to be an emotional surprise for Siqueira. Shaken by the situation, a group of former students decided to buy the scarab and return it to the teacher as a special gift. The episode, which occurred in São Francisco, in the state of Curitiba, was recorded by the radio station of Paraná RPC.

In the city everyone knew Marcelo Siqueira, an ex professor of history and geography at the public school of Doña Carola, for his Green Beetle, which was the only one in the city.

“Every time we saw a green car on the street, we knew it was Professor Marcelo. We had a very strong attachment to him “said Claudio Martins, a former student, as reported by the media G1.

After spending more than half of his life with his “Beetle”, Marcelo had to put the car up for sale due to financial difficulties. It was where, Almost 40 years later, the group of students who liked the teacher got together and prepared a surprise.

“He shook our hands and led us on the right track. He sat down with us, gave us advice, ”recalls Claudio.

Car bought, tribute made

Upon hearing that the professor would sell the beloved Beetle, Cláudio mobilized his companions, made a collection to buy the car, but with one goal: to return it to the owner.

“We decided to buy the Beetle and give it to him”, Said Claudio.

Everything was prepared without the knowledge of the teacher. Marcelo even walked around the car before selling it, thinking it would be the last. But it was when the car broke down in the middle of the street that the surprise was discovered.

“Professor Marcelo has always been very exemplary. She is a very calm person, so much so that I became a teacher, I am a teacher, ”said Danieli Fernandes, a former student.

Gratitude and satisfaction

Excited, the teacher expressed his gratitude for the gesture of the students.

“I have no way of thanking you. I am 87 years old and I cannot grow old thanks to these young people with whom I have lived. My satisfaction is enormous “, said the professor.

“Thank you all, I hope we see each other on the streets still with the Ladybug identity,” he said.

The idea of ​​the former students now is to reform the car.

“We are going to appeal to reform this Beetle, because Professor Marcelo deserves it. It is a human figure who has formed great citizens “, said Percy Goralewski, a former student.

Teacher salaries in Brazil

On the other hand, the episode also shed light on the difficulties of Brazilian teachers and retirees.

According to the consulting firm Catho, a teacher earns an average of 1,800 reais ($ 330) in Brazil. This average takes into account teachers from different educational levels, segments and regions of the country, without specifying the number of hours.

According to the 2020 edition of Education at a Glance, According to an OECD report with 38 member countries and 8 other guests, such as Brazil, Brazilian secondary school teachers earned an average of $ 25,966 per year. The value is almost half of the OECD average of $ 49,778.

Regarding retired teachers, who were able to retire before November 2019, they receive a pension equivalent to 80% of salaries with the highest contribution.

After the pension reform approved in 2019 by the Bolsonaro government, the amount is calculated on the basis of 60% of the average salary plus 2% for each year of contribution after 20 years for men and 15 for women.

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