What memories do you have of Gaztelueta, what impact has the school had on your professional development...? We gather, from the experience of our former students, a reflection on the impact of Gaztelueta on their personal and professional career. Today we meet...
Full name and promotionFernando de Lecea Grávalos. Promotion 34.
Where do you live and since when? In Japan (Kyoto) since July 2015.
What do you do? More specifically, I am the director of an Opus Dei residence in Kyoto, I have an established company in Osaka dedicated to tuna (Echebastar, a tuna company in Bermeo), canned wine (OUI wine, my own brand), chocolates (Pancracio) and many other things. We also have a publishing house (プリズムBOOKS) and, lastly, we are running an NPO (International Youth Cooperation Japan) to support children's education (and food, if necessary) in disadvantaged areas, such as the Manila rubbish dump.
What are the most positive and the most negative things about this country and its citizens? Difficult question. At first glance, the most positive thing for me is perhaps the people: "You learn a lot from and with them. And the most negative thing is probably the lack of flexibility and the accumulation of written and unwritten rules. A country that is a bit too "kibishi", strict.
When was the last time you visited Gaztelueta? In May 2022, it looks fantastic. I was blown away by the central and the children's, they are very cool. Essentially I found it as usual, although aesthetically improved.
Any memories, anecdotes or adventures that you remember especially from your school days? There are so many memories and stories. I find it almost impossible to choose just one, although I will try, they were 12 wonderful years.
Many teachers come to mind: Pineda (Don José Luis, a great teacher), or Croveto (our super head of studies, who was a mother), or Cadenato, with his moustache and his scarf to match his socks, who was a spectacular Latin teacher and a beautiful person, or Tapia who was a crack, with one hand he had a spectacular punch, or Patata (D. Rafael Corazón) with his fag, or Eskubi (D. Ignacio Escudero) and his basketball boys, etc., etc. Rafael Corazón) with his fag, or Eskubi (D. Ignacio Escudero) and his basketball boys, etc. In short, I learned something from all of them and above all they transmitted to me, it seems to me, a very positive way of facing life, very positive, very much in the sense that it is worth living with authenticity, of facing life, of living with confidence and passion in what you believe in, with naturalness, that "be our yes, yes, be our no, no". In short, the teachers didn't just transmit knowledge, which they also did.
A very significant anecdote for me, which I think serves as an example of what Gaztelueta is all about. One summer when I was a little boy (I would have been in 6th grade or so), Taca (Fernando Lecanda), who was our handball coach and was starting to give some classes at school, came with his girlfriend (today his wife, Marian Ispizua) to Plencia, where we happily spent our summers, on the 7th of August to have an ice cream and celebrate my birthday. I thought it was the best thing ever and I still do. That a teacher, in his holidays, with his girlfriend, dedicates his time to a boy who was an "almost thinking being", says a lot about the treatment, the affection, the spirit of service and the values that reign in Gaztelueta. For me it is priceless, it is amazing.
How do you think it shows that you are a Gaztelueta alumnus? In everything, I think. Gaztelueta leaves a stamp, an imprint of great value. And my impression is that you can recognise it at a glance. Perhaps this has to do with the fact that to speak of Gaztelueta is to speak of Saint Josemaría. It is the first Opus Dei school in the world and Saint Josemaría did everything he could to ensure that the school was up to the task. I honestly believe that he succeeded. We are very fortunate.
In Japan, for example, one of our best customers. He realised that Juan (Juan Basagoiti. Commercial Director of Echebastar, who is also a former student and current father of a student) and I had a lot in common. And he asked us if we had studied at the same school. Surprising.
I was also explaining this to a Japanese the other day. How amazing my school was: it was not a coffee-for-all school, everyone was treated according to their needs (or at least they tried to). The preceptor, the spiritual director, the number of friends you make that last a lifetime, etc.
Anyway, forgive me for getting involved... You've left me a gap and you know what I mean. Going back to your question, perhaps the nuance of a former student is authenticity, being himself wherever he is: be it Japan, London or Cuzcurrita del río tirón. And to bring to life that spirit of peace and joy that we have received, a legacy from Saint Josemaría.
Are you coming back to live in Spain? Not at the moment, with what it has cost me to learn the language of the samurai, I have to pay for it. Although you never know, always in God's hands.
I will be spending this Christmas in Bilbao, after 25 years, and I am very happy and content. My father passed away on 9 October and I'm going to spend Christmas with my mother, the boss. I'm really, really looking forward to it. I have had spectacular parents and it is a total privilege to spend Christmas with my mother.
A message for alumni? May I have two? The first is a phrase that my cousin Borja wrote to me in my school folder and that stuck with me. I don't know who it belongs to. Maybe it's Borja's, he was always a machine. It goes something like this: "the day you were born everyone laughed and you cried. Live in such a way that when you die everyone cries and you laugh". The second one is a classic that always accompanies me and it is, as my uncle Mati would say: "A united team, great success".
