In case this one also gets paywalled, I am reproducing it here: www.coastsidenews.com/community…

Coastside News: ‘Rest well, my dear friend’ Remembrance of Tony Corten

By Peter Tokofsky Apr 1, 2025

Well over 1,000 people gathered Sunday afternoon in the Terra Nova High School gym to share memories of Anthony Corten, the principal of Ocean Shore School in Pacifica who passed away last month.

The Terra Nova gym was filled with people whose lives were touched by Tony Corten. While the room was just large enough to contain the crowd of students, families, friends and Pacifica residents who came to pay respects, the space could not contain the outpourings of love and affection for a man who, as speaker after speaker made clear, embodied kindness and who was so much more than any one label could capture.

“He was so talented – to the point of annoying. Whatever it was, he was good at it,” Dawn Mermer told the crowd in her introductory remarks. “He was also the funniest person. He could take the most mundane thing or situation and turn it into something hilarious and joyful.”

The afternoon celebrating a life featured musical interludes including students from Ocean Shore and Sunset Ridge Schools singing the Beatles “In My Life”, and Erin Brazill and Erma Kyriakos performing “Let It Be” and Leonard Cohen’s “Hallelujah” with the crowd joining in.

Corten’s love of the Fab Four was well known, but many in the crowd might not have known that before becoming an educator he was one of the premier drummers in the United Kingdom. In 1997 his band Flyscreen opened for No Doubt on their UK tour when their single “Don’t Speak” hit number one on the charts.

CJ Valenti, owner of Pacifica music venue Winters Tavern, saw both sides of Corten. As a music presenter, he said after the memorial, he always hoped to host a Flyscreen reunion but was also happy any time Corten got behind the drum set for open mic night. Valenti’s greatest appreciation, though, was as a parent of two boys going through the challenges of COVID and a divorce. “He was there every morning, and he knew every child’s name,” Valenti said about his kids’ principal. “You could tell the kids respected him and they all liked him.”

In her remarks, Brazill repeated that Corten “was one of those people who was good at everything he did. He was also one half of the most beautiful marriage I’ve ever seen in my life.”

Gina Arguello, who co-taught a 4th-grade class with Corten before he became an administrator, described him as a big brother and recounted many of the pranks he executed over the years, including sending unexpected things such as a bell or “actual trash” through school district mail, sending student messengers to other classes with random and useless messages, taking another teacher’s class into his room for 45 minutes without telling anyone – just to cause chaos. “Mr. Corten made school fun,” she said. “He liked what he did and enjoyed it with a passion.”

Johnny Sideris read letters from Corten’s parents and from his wife, Kelley, who thanked everyone for their love and support. In her letter, Kelley recounted how she and Tony would high-five and congratulate themselves for having each other. “I will carry him with me always.”

“Everybody here loved Tony. He was an inspiring educator. His passion for making the world a better place shone in everything he did,” Ellie Cundiff said. “His laughter is in our hearts. His kindness will live on. Rest well, my dear friend.”

Following the remarks and performances, the crowd gathered outside on a suddenly sunny afternoon for donuts, bubbles and more music.

Before leaving, Pacifica City Councilmember Mary Bier remarked, “It’s all about love. No matter what is happening around us, it doesn’t matter. We just have to love each other.”

And in the end The love you take Is equal to the love you make – The Beatles, “The End”