Recipient's Name: Joe Salema

School: Jacob Hespeler Secondary

Subject: Guitar.

Number of Years Teaching: 9

Joe Salema is in his ninth year of teaching. He teaches 220 Jacob Hespeler Secondary students guitar.

Joe did not have a teacher that connected with him by getting to know him. Playing guitar became very important to him at age 13 because he felt that was the only thing that he could do well. He soon realized that all he wanted to do was teach. Today he loves teaching guitar but more than that he loves teaching students and making connections with them. He loves joking with them, building relationships and helping them as people. He also loves to pass on his knowledge of music and to watch them get excited as they get better and better. Students like to hang out in the music room and share life. Joe creates band-like settings that aren't bars and helps his students record albums for free which they go on to sell. His students perform in local festivals and some have gone onto "fame". Joe believes that his students won't necessarily remember the lessons but they will remember who cared for them as individuals and works to let them know that he does care.

Alison, one of Joe's students, was greatly influenced by him. She wrote:

Words fail to express the difference that Mr. Salema has made for my high school career. He is friendly and enthusiastic, getting all of his students excited about learning. He knows every one of his students and pays attention to individual difficulties and change of mood inside his classroom. If a student is feeling tired or lonely, he notices and approaches the students in a way that is thoughtful and unobtrusive. If there is a song you have always wanted to play, he will take time to listen to it, write it out and show it to you after class. He has done this for me countless times. He relates to students with the perfect combination of humour and concern. He is a man who loves his job and his students.

What has Mr. Salema given me? The same thing he has given countless students: confidence in my musical abilities, the ability to say I have performed on the same stage as the Rolling Stones twice, and I have visited six European countries. He has given me greater confidence in my worth as a student and also as a human being. Perhaps greatest of all, he has given me priceless memories of a high school experience not totally ruined by acne, cliques and impossible exams. He is a beacon of hope to students.