By Kathryn Cross
News Editor
and Lauren Farberman
Staff Writer
Former Mira Costa English teacher John Heideman passed away at 10:15 p.m. on Monday after battling cancer for the past five years.
Last spring, Heideman retired from Costa after working here for 39 years. He was diagnosed with stage-four prostate cancer, metastatic bone cancer and tumors in his liver. In the span of Heideman’s career, he worked in multiple positions, including the choir director, technology coordinator, art production teacher, band director and English teacher. Last year, he taught the senior English seminars Death and Dying in Literature and Humor in Literature.
“The biggest thing my family wants to say is how much Costa meant to him,” Heideman’s daughter, Christa Heideman, said.
To commemorate Heideman’s career at the end of his time at Costa, alumni Noelle Thomas, Dillon Patel and Luke Jelmini organized a rally on April 30 last year. Students and staff members wore “Keep Calm and Fight On” shirts to demonstrate their support for Heideman. There will be a memorial service at 1:30 p.m. for Heideman on Jan. 30 in the auditorium.
“[Mr. Heideman’s] legacy as being one of the most amazing teachers will remain intact forever,” Patel said.
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