To the editor:

Thanks for your wonderful tribute to Lindbergh Schools Executive Director of Planning and Development Karl Guyer and the work that he has done for the Lindbergh community.

As a former colleague of Karl’s, I can attest to not only his love for the district and its families, but his incredible intelligence and work ethic. From the time Karl joined the district, he has been committed to “first quality, on schedule, within budget” construction projects with no “do overs.”

And he has lived up to that commitment project after project. As you mentioned in your editorial, Karl’s oversight has ensured the success of district projects.

As the late Paul Harvey would say, now for the “rest of the story.” While it is a considerable challenge to lead successful construction projects for more than 20 years, it is quite another to keep them clean and well-maintained for teachers and staff to be able to focus on the real mission of the district — learning.

Karl has done both. He has not only been an incredible steward of the money with which the community has entrusted him to build buildings, but he has been a remarkable trustee of those buildings once they have been built. Karl has done whatever it takes to maintain a first-quality learning environment — safe, clean and operational.

In highlighting Karl’s leadership, I also hope the community will recognize and applaud the entire district operations and maintenance staff who mirror Karl’s commitment and have worked with equal zeal to ensure the district is up and running on a daily basis. They quietly go about getting the job done in normal times, but it is in emergency situations — which they never allow to become crises —that they become the real heroes, ensuring teaching and learning can continue without interruption.

Kudos to Karl and all who serve on his remarkable team.

Jim Sandfort

Retired Lindbergh Schools superintendent