Having just heard of "the Colonel's" passing, may I offer my condolences to his family at this time and ditto the admiration and sheer joy he brought to his students over the years at both Miami Springs schools. One of my all-time favorites, he helped form my decision to pursue teaching as a career    that lasted 36 years in Miami schools. Congratulations on a life lived to the fullest and inspiration shared with those fortunate to be under your tutelage. ¡Mil gracias, Sr. Ramirez!

The Colonel, as we always called him, was one of those teachers you never forget. He was my Spanish teacher for 3 years at Miami Springs Sr. High from 1964 - 1967 and the sponsor of the Spanish National Honor Society. Underneath his stern demeanor, he was a lot of fun, and enjoyed being teased as well as teasing his students. I remember how, because of his accent, we always tried to get him to say "beach" (hoping to get what in those days was a naughty word), but he always stuck to "la playa". We always thought he would go on forever, and in some ways, he has. Vaya con dios...

I am truly sorry to hear of the loss of one of my most memorable teachers.  He taught me Spanish at Miami Springs Senior High School from 1967-1969.  I am pleased to hear that he had a long and eventful life.

I had the pleasure to have Col. Ramirez for five years as my Spanish instructor.  He remains, nearly half a century later, one of the two or three most memorable teachers of my life.  Our first meeting was in the fall of 1962 at Miami Springs Junior High School and it was not auspicious.  My Spanish, such as it was, was picked up from the Cuban refugees who had recently flooded Miami.  Col. Ramirez spoke – and demanded from his students – the learned Castilian Spanish of his upbringing.  Each time I would say ‘jo voy’ he would call me a ‘knucklehead’, and it became my alternate name in his class for years afterward.  (As an aside, it was in his Spanish II class a year later that we first heard of the assassination of John F. Kennedy; the look on his face was one of personal loss.)

In 1964, Colonel Ramirez followed us to the then-new Miami Spring Senior High, a familiar face in an unfamiliar venue.  His teaching methods did not change.  He demanded much and, when we met his standards, he did not stint in his praise.  His style was also personal: in an era before political correctness rendered such familiarity taboo, the girls of our class were ‘que bella’ or ‘muy linda’.  One was ‘la rubia bomba’ – the blonde bombshell. His skills as an educator faltered only once when, in my senior year, he attempted to introduce me to the glorious language of Ortega y Gasset.  I was not ready to comprehend liberal philosophy in any language.

He was an extraordinary may who touched many lives for the better.  Regardless of the reason he chose to make his second career one of an educator, I am a better person for those five years.  Thank you, Col. Ramirez.

I am truly sorry for your loss.  Mr. Ramirez was a great teacher.  I have often thought of him and wanted to thank him for giving me a gift, the gift of Spanish, but didn't know how to reach him.  I became fluent and have used Spanish throughout my life and will always be grateful to him because of this.  I know he would have been proud to know that he helped change my life.  I became a teacher myself.  Although I was an English teacher, I used my Spanish to help ESOL students learn to speak, read, and write English.  I continue to communicate with my Argentine exchange family in Spanish.  I couldn't have done this without the Colonel.  My thoughts and prayers are with you and your family at this time.

Col. Ramirez was my favorite teacher in High School (Miami Springs Sr. High). He was a very proud veteran and a gentle giant to his students, always inspiring us to do better. I remember him fondly and along with his family mourn the passing of a very great man.

Kathleen Robertson Yates, Miami Springs, Fl

nuestras mas sinceras condolencias por la muerte de su ser querido; que el Dios de amor les de la fortaleza para soportar su gran perdida; esperamos que las palabras de Rev 21:4,5 les sean de esperanza: "Y limpiara (Jehova) toda lagrima de sus ojos, y la muerte no sera mas, ni existira mas lamento ni clamor ni dolor. Las cosas anteriores han pasado." ...Y Aquel que estaba sentado en el trono dijo:.."Escribe, porque estas palabras son fieles y verdaderas".

So sorry to hear of his passing.  He was one of my favorite teachers in high school, always with a joke or a tease.  I have thought of him so many times over the years.

OBITUARY

LTC (Ret) Agustin Adan Ramirez

September 20, 1917 – April 18, 2011

Striffler-Hamby Mortuary - LaGrange

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