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Two students at Stafford House
School of English
were left shocked and delighted recently when they found that their lesson
was all about the amazing life of their great grandfather.
Brothers Cláudio, twenty two, and Guilherme De Oliveira Rondon, sixteen,
from Brazil are the great grandsons of the Cândido Mariano da Silva Rondon,
the famous Brazilian explorer who features worldwide in books, journals,
encyclopedias, TV documentaries and recently a BBC Radio 4 history feature.
Cândido Mariano da Silva Rondon, 1865–1958, was a Brazilian explorer and
founder of the Indian Protection Service. He was a major in the army and in
1907 was appointed to build a telegraph network from Rio Branco to Rio De
Janeiro, and became concerned with the problems of the indigenous peoples.
In 1910 he formed the Indian Protection Service, which he developed into one
of the most prestigious humanitarian organizations of its kind in the
Americas. He was made a marshal in 1955 and the Brazilian state of Rondônia
is named after him.
Cláudio said: ‘The teacher began to give out the handouts for the lesson and
I thought; I recognise that picture. When I looked again and studied it
closely I became really shocked. It was great, as then I was very excited
and told everyone in the class that it was great grandfather and I was able
to tell them about his life and work.’ |
