More than a thousand books to start over: the donation that rebuilt a school

“It is an act of love, of return to public school for so much teaching that marked us for a lifetime,” said Virginia Properzi with the broken voice and the heart in Juan José Step 1441, where he once learned to read, to add already dream. There, in primary school No. 17 of Bahía Blanca, he took her first steps in life, long before the geographical distance led her to live in Buenos Aires.

More than 600 kilometers away, from his home in Berazategui, he led a silent but powerful crusade: to collect books for his beloved school, which was devastated by the flood of March 7.

That night, the water from the Napastá stream overflowed, invading classrooms, patios and corridors. The library was completely submerged. What was once a reading and learning shelter became, in a few hours, into a desolate and mud space.

“The image was devastating. When I saw the photos with the water to the roof, my soul broke. The New.

The woman graduated from school in 1973 and more than 30 years ago she lives in Buenos Aires, but her bond with bay and with the school she remains intact.

In the midst of so anguish an idea was born: rebuild the library from scratch, book by book. I didn’t know very well how, but it was clear that something could do. “The first thing I did was ask the director, Mirian Salinas. I almost died. The library was underwater, all the books were lost … there was automatic: ‘I can do this from here.

He called her old friend and excommail of primary school, Mónica Franzino, who lives in Sierra de la Venta, and together they began to weave the solidarity network. Without large platforms or media campaigns, the initiative grew strongly through mouth to mouth. “I started for my friends, her children, her grandchildren. I know many teachers who joined and started looking in schools, in libraries. She did the same, and Sierra’s library also collaborated – the librarian Adriana Kanerth was key -” he said.

In a few weeks, the answer exceeded any expectation, gathering more than a thousand books. “A beautiful madness,” Virginia defined, still surprised by the magnitude of what was achieved.

From Berazategui, the specimens first traveled to Barracas and then to Bahía Blanca, thanks to the selfless collaboration of two transport companies that joined the cause without charging a single weight. People who contributed their help in the logistics of transfer and packaging also participated, including Juan Sánchez, Silvana Pineda, Mario Lagos and Norma Chaparro.

“They have already delivered at school. I could not be, but alumni were on behalf. The director wrote me a beautiful, unexpected message: ‘My boys returned.’ It was a pamper to the soul,” he said, deeply excited.

The story of Virginia and his school had a very recent separate chapter. Two years ago, together with their promotional colleagues, they organized the reunion for the 50 years of graduates. They returned to the classroom, celebrated teacher’s day in the patio, plant trees and donated money to the cooperator. “From that day we were closer to school again,” he said.

Now, with this new solidarity action, the loop was even more strengthened. “The book does not take place, although they occupied a lot … it was to give the boys who still could not return to classes,” he reflected.

“It was beautiful. Many were directly affected by the flood. But this was a light. First of all and with everything destroyed, we continue to build with our school,” he added.

In his voice there is gratitude, but also conviction. For her, the gesture was more than a solidarity act: it was a deep claim of public education.

“We are professionals thanks to her. Primary, secondary school, university: all audiences. This is a claim and unconditional defense,” he said.

“For us it is this: the recognition of social equality before education and solidarity, beyond your social class. This marked us for a lifetime,” Virginia concluded, as who knows that, although the distance is great, the love for school is even greater.