A tailor who couldn't study leaves his inheritance to the village high school to save Catalan

GironaAntoni Rossell Terris died four months ago, at the age of 88, in Sant Hilari Sacalm, La Selva. When his will was made public, the entire town learned exciting news: all the money he had earned during his life was left to the Anton Busquets y Punset Institute so that young people in Sant Hilari could study and enjoy quality education. Rossell Terris, who had no children but many nieces and nephews, learned the trade of tailoring at a very young age, making a fortune, but never had the opportunity to pursue higher education; a thorn in his side that, through this donation, he wanted to repair, thinking of the next generation.

The will has been bequeathed directly to the Department of Education, which will manage the process so that, as Rossell Terris expressly stated, the money will reach the Sant Hilari Institute. The contribution will result in four annual scholarships of 5,000 euros for second-year high school students. In principle, they will be operational next academic year: three will be for the highest grades in Catalan language and literature, and one will be for academic excellence. However, the beneficiary students will have to commit to continuing their studies after high school, as they are designed to cover the costs, at least for the first year, of a future university degree or a future advanced degree.

No family member was aware of this decision, except for Judit Rossell, niece and executor of the estate. "I'd known about it for a long time. I couldn't say it, but it made me very happy. It's a great act of generosity," she explains. She also highlights the importance of three of the scholarships being for the Catalan language: "Antoni was very concerned about the language and culture. He knew they weren't going through a good time, and he was a great patriot," she says. Initially, the idea was to offer two scholarships for the Catalan language and two for the best grades, but, given the decline in the use of Catalan in the country, months before his death he decided to change it to three and one.

Antoni Rossell Terris was born in the midst of the Spanish Civil War and grew up during the postwar period. At just 12 years old, his parents sent him to become an apprentice in a village tailor's shop. Later, he moved to Barcelona, ​​started his own business, and then lived in Arenys de Mar, where he continued working as a tailor, always working with the best professionals from Catalonia and France. Finally, in his old age, he returned to Sant Hilari. "I can't say how much money he left behind, but I can confirm that there will be scholarships for many years to come," says his niece.

An honor for the institute

As expected, the Anton Busquets i Punset Institute received the news with joy: "It's a very beautiful message, because it transforms grief and loss into hope and confidence in youth," says the institute's director, Josep Broch.

Rossell Terris was very familiar with the reality of the Sant Hilari secondary school, since his cousin, Xavier Rossell – father of the executor niece – was the town's first democratic mayor and, at the end of the century, fought to obtain the land, then the institute. "This legacy is a recognition of the work done by the institute and strengthens the baccalaureate project, since sometimes we find students who have to leave the municipality, but this aid gives us prestige and offers young people an incentive to get good grades," concludes Broch.

The Terris scholarship isn't the only one offered at the school: since 2015, the Toni Guzmán scholarship has been offered, promoted by the parents of a student who died of a degenerative disease. Each year, with the support of the City Council, they award €500 to the best secondary school student.