A desired cello
In 2018, the Deutsche Schule Medellín community, through the solidarity program, granted Jhorjimar Castellanos a wish. This is how our Institution maintains its purpose to change lives.
Jhorjimar Castellanos’ life changed that November day in 2018. Well, actually, she had already faced a big change. She was born in Venezuela, and in 2017, her family decided to leave Caracas because of the political situation in their country. Medellín was their destination. They arrived here with the purpose of starting a new life, but a part of Jhorjimar’s life had to stay behind: music. Ever since she was little, she had gotten close to musical instruments at her school. She played violin first, and then cello. It was love at first sight, she could not imagine her life without playing her favorite instrument, but when she left her home country, she had to say goodbye to her cello.
When she arrived to Medellín, she started studying at “Institución Educativa Vallejuelos de Robledo”. At the end of the year, they found out that the families of a school called Deutsche Schule Medellín wanted to grant wishes to the boys and girls of that school. “I knew what I wanted”, she says. “Even though they told me that my wish couldn’t exceed the $50.000 pesos price, I wrote a letter saying that I wanted a cello”. Without losing hope, the day arrived. The representatives from Deutsche Schule Medellín delivered the gifts and Jhorjimar was invited up on stage to play a song: “I was told that I could borrow a cello. It made me very happy because my dream to play music was coming true. When I got it out of the case, I saw that it was new, and I found that very strange. I played, and when I finished playing, I gave it back. That’s when they told me it was mine. I was overjoyed!” Jhorjimar is one of the beneficiaries of the Tree of Wishes, an initiative that connects the families at Deutsche Schule Medellín with the dreams of boys, girls, and young students from low-income backgrounds in the Metropolitan Area.
The present
Today, Jhorjimar has found music again. At 15, she plays for several orchestras. Some of them are: the orchestra from “Escuela de Música de San Javier”, the one from “La Red de Escuelas de Música”, and the orchestra “Al Son de la 13”. She started a musical duet with a friend called “Amy y Mar”: “Amy plays the violin and I play the cello. We play at birthdays, anniversaries, and other celebrations”, says Jhorjimar. She gets excited when she talks about music. She wants to be a singer and she knows that fame and recognition are not easy to achieve, but she also knows that it is not impossible, and she works every day towards that goal. “Music is magic. Once you get to know it, it puts a spell on you. So, I will fight for that dream of mine”.
Jhorjimar Castellanos could not think of a life without playing her favorite instrument. But when she left her home country, she had to leave her cello behind.
She thanks our Educational Community for giving her the opportunity to connect with music again. “When I go there, I feel butterflies in my stomach. I feel like a celebrity. People want to take pictures with me, they talk to me, and they make me very happy”. Jhorjimar played for the kindergarten students last February. “I love teaching”, she says. That’s why she appreciates these moments with our youngest students. Music is life. Everything revolves around it. If music has fulfilled her dreams once, perhaps the future has more in store for her. Jhorjimar has performed at Deutsche Schule Medellín’s Auditorium several times. Besides playing the cello, Jhorjimar also sings and plays the guitar.