Farewell to Inés Mercado – a Marienauer with heart, attitude, and passion
At the end of the school year, we bid farewell to Inés Mercado, a colleague who has shaped Marienau in many ways over three decades. 

Her roots lie in Argentina, and her first passion was languages – first as a translator, later as a teacher. In 1993, she and her husband Gert Erber moved to Germany – and fortunately also directly to Marienau. Here she quickly became an integral part of the school community – as a teacher, a resident of the former Tobiashaus, a dedicated colleague, and a reliable contact person. She established the Spanish department, supervised many students during their stays in South America, and maintained contact with host families and social projects such as Alegría Ahora in Cordoba for many years. Not least thanks to her efforts, awareness of international issues was strengthened at our school.

Her involvement in UNESCO project work was particularly close to her heart. Since 2016, she coordinated this project with great dedication, organized meetings and project weeks, and made a decisive contribution to making cosmopolitanism and social responsibility integral parts of our school culture.

Anyone who has worked with Inés knows that she is a person with a genuine interest in others, open, approachable, helpfu — but also clear in her communication and attitude. Many colleagues and students appreciated her calm, supportive manner, her willingness to listen, and her keen eye for what is needed.
With her leaving, Marienau is not only losing an experienced teacher, but also a person who has helped shape and enrich our school. We wish her all the best for this new chapter in her life – and look forward to hearing from her from time to time.

Farewell to Andreas Gülstorf, Caitlin Lewis and Bernhard Thomé
Andreas Gülstorf and Caitlin Lewis were also said farewell at the end-of-year celebration in early July. Both contributed to life at Marienau in different ways during the past school year.

Caitlin Lewis worked as a social worker at the boarding school, looked after the Mühle residential area, and also supported the school in the area of public relations. This was her second phase at Marienau, as she is a former student and has been associated with the school for many years. Andreas Gülstorf was involved in the politics and economics department and actively participated in school development processes. He launched the “Future Diplomats” challenge club, which was very well received and will be continued next year by our colleague Kerrin Devos.
Special thanks also go to Bernhard Thomé, who supported Marienau remotely during the past school year. Through his mathematics lessons, he ensured that Marienau students spending a year abroad did not fall behind in their 12th grade requirements – a valuable contribution to individual support.