Alfred Tschmelak – Farewell to a valued colleague

At the beginning of this crazy year, we were for the first time confronted with the health problems of our colleague. Coughing and hoarseness in the middle of winter – of course we all thought of a flu-like infection. He was still desperate to write the test in his graduating class, the HL5b, and then take his time to get well. But unfortunately things turned out differently than planned. Life writes its own laws. When the health problems did not improve after a few weeks, a detailed clarification became urgent. Alfred was transferred to the regional hospital in Graz for this examination. I still remember my first visit and the conversation about his state of health very well. Despite the seriousness of the situation, one could sense optimism and a small amount of humour.

Then we had to wait, his classes, his pupils and of course his colleagues. Now and then a short contact, unfortunately no good diagnoses. In spring his state of health unfortunately continued to worsen. His students and we had to go to the home office, Alfred unfortunately had to go back to hospital. In the middle of the preparation for our final school leaving examinations we received the sad news of the death of our esteemed colleague.

Alfred Tschmelak was a committed colleague at our school for more than six years, and for many he became a collegial friend during this time. He was a very popular teacher among our students, and everyone appreciated his professional knowledge, social skills and sense of humour. Alfred soon felt at home on the campus of the tourism schools, as his wife confirmed several times. What we now lack is his humour, his relaxed way of approaching problems, and above all his friendly smile. What remains is the memory of a wonderful time together at our school – we will not forget these years with our colleague!

Peter Kospach

A farewell from former student Antonia Hois:

Dear Mr. Tschmelak,

Whenever I think of you, and yes, I like to think of you, the first thing that comes to my mind is your hearty smile. The second thing that comes to my mind is how you looked at us when someone once again made a comma mistake, because we were all really “good” in that.

There are a thousand words in my head that I would like to write down, but I think the right start is probably a big thank you.
I want to thank you for the last few years we have had the pleasure of spending with you. You have accompanied us through school and have been at our side in every situation, whether positive or negative. Thank you for giving your best every day and making us feel safe and secure. Thank you also for your unique talent, which always managed to make us laugh and cheer us up, no matter how disgruntled our day seemed.

You must have had to go through a lot with us, but in the end I hope you were a little proud that we were your first class which you accompanied to the final school leaving examination as head of the class. I’m sure we didn’t always make it easy for you, but you knew that we liked you very much as a teacher, as a head of class and as a person, and I hope that you appreciated our time together.

I know very well that nothing better could have happened to us. No matter how stupidly we behaved, you never gave up and repeated each topic until even the last one had at least a hint. And when we were once again completely on the line, you simply packed your things and taught us without any teaching material, because with your incredibly comprehensive knowledge you didn’t need any books or other documents to teach us anything new. No matter what subject we were dealing with, you always knew what was going on, whether exact dates or dates of birth – nobody could fool you. Even when we got upset again or something went against the grain, you were happy to express your opinion in your diplomatic way.

Dear Mr. Tschmelak, your kind heart, your lively smile and your unbelievably wise manner will accompany us forever and will be remembered.

I thank you from the bottom of my heart that we were allowed to get to know you.

I would like to end with words from Rainer Maria Rilke (Translation from German):

So let us say goodbye like two stars, parted from night by exorbitance, that is a nearness proving at the far and recognizing itself in the farthest.