A revolutionary teacher remembered
FRIENDS and family of former education and anti-apartheid activist Abraham Elias “Ernie” Lennert paid their last respects to him at his memorial service in Goedverwacht on Saturday morning.
Lennert, who died at the age of 88, was a celebrated member of the Non-European Unity Movement, the Teachers’ League of South Africa and the New Unity Movement. However, according to friends and former students, he was more popular for the years he spent teaching Afrikaans in the Eastern Cape and Cape Town.
He was survived by his wife, Josphine, and their two children, Dimitri and Varinia, and his grandchildren.
Since his passing, Lennert’s former colleagues, students and friends have shared some of their experiences of having known him.
Judge Siraj Desai, said: “He was my Afrikaans teacher at Trafalgar High School, one of the finest teachers in that era. He not only represented the golden years back then, but he also succeeded in instilling a broader education vision in his students.”
Yusuf Chukte said: “I grew up in Elsies River when he was a prominent leader within the community. Widely known and influential, Lennert played an instrumental role in implementing and uplifting the most vulnerable of people, and I think that was what drew people in. He not only spoke of, but fought for, equal education and the rights and freedom of workers.”
Anton Lategan said: “Lennert was such a great person that one would immediately become aware of his extraordinary presence and his impact.
“His passion was to contribute to creating a better world than the one he entered.”