On Sunday night, many students, including myself, parents and other people, lost a friend, a role model and possibly one of the best teachers to ever be given the privilege of teaching in the Palo Alto Unified School District.
Mr. George Flath was a wonderful man whose carefree sense of humor and generous amounts of kindness touched many families during his 17 years at Herbert Hoover Elementary School. I admit I cannot remember many of the subjects we covered when I had him as a teacher, but I will always remember what Mr. Flath did to bring the Hoover community closer together in his own way. Even those who didn’t have the pleasure of being in his class knew about the infamous Wrath of Flath. As scary as it may sound, any student who ever had him as a teacher or even had a brief conversation with him will probably testify that the Wrath of Flath was just a silly legend that the great man himself established to keep his kids in line.
Mr. Flath always encouraged us to do what we loved doing and to not be discouraged by the obstacles that may stand in the way of our dreams. It’s funny how his simple acts of kindness left such a lasting impression. Elementary school children are never an easy bunch to deal with, yet he still showed up to school every day with a big smile on his face and an incredible amount of patience. Instead of losing his temper and yelling at us whenever we got too chaotic, he laughed it off and called us his social butterflies. His attitude at work truly is a testament to the special unique touch he brought to both the Hoover community and to the lives of all the people who knew and loved him.
Before entering fifth grade, I was one of the shyest kids in my year. I was always scared to stand out and try new things. I was even scared of Mr. Flath, who had always been kind to me and did his best to push me out of my comfort zone. By fifth grade, most of my peers had dreams of what they wanted to do when they grew up, but I was still stuck, not knowing what I was good at and struggling to find my niche.
Mr. Flath is the man who, after reading a short article I wrote for the fifth grade newspaper, pushed me to pursue journalism in both middle and high school. It seemed like a silly idea to me when he first brought it up, yet here I am now, boasting the title of News Editor for this esteemed online publication. He saw something else neither I nor my parents ever saw — he saw my potential for greatness. Mr. Flath saw something special in everyone and, because of this, he encouraged a multitude of people to follow and develop their dreams, regardless of their age or relationship with him.
Seven years ago, this man changed my life in the best way possible. Looking back at my time as an elementary school student, I think about how he must have changed thousands of others’ lives in his lifetime and his years as a teacher for PAUSD.
To Mr. Flath: You were the most memorable teacher I ever had at Hoover, and not just because you were the only male teacher during my time there. Even though you’re gone now, the Wrath of Flath will be around us for far longer. Wherever you are right now, I hope you can finally find the peace and quiet that we elementary school kids never let you have. Thank you for everything you did for me and everyone else around you. Rest in peace.