- Today, 1 June, it is 10 years since the death of Andoni Esparza Gallastegi, founder of the Funcor cooperative. The Andoni Esparza Gallastegi Social Action Association has organized a meeting to learn about what Funcor was, on 4 June in Elorrio. In fact, being the Funcor foundry or the factory selling agricultural machinery became the first free ikastola in Euskera, the university “art”, the professional cycling team, founder of Laboral Kutxa, or the promoter of the first feature film in Euskera Ama lur.
Throughout the morning of June 4, the Alkartu Gastronomic Association of Elorrio (c/ Berriotxo 27) has organized these talks to analyze the impact of the Funcor experience in the municipality. The following conferences will be available from 10:30 onwards:
Funcor. What happened? Andoni Basabe
Andoni Esparza and Funcor. The person and his work Julia Itoiz (chronicle of a conference here given by Andoni Esparza)
Funcor College and “Credit to honor” Iñigo Agirre
Elorrio Experimental School. An experimental pedagogical project Mikel Onandia
Funcor: Rikardo Ajuria Cycling Workshop
Funcor and Mondragon, two opposing cooperative models Jabier Lertxundi (here the chronicle of a conference on this topic)
1200px.jpg)
Andoni Esparza Gallastegi, founder of Funcorrie
Founded by Andoni Esparza Gallastegi in Funcor Elorrio at the age of 23. Today it is 10 years of his death (1 June 2012 in Pamplona). In the words of the organizing association of the conference, "Andoni Esparza Gallastegi was the seed of a business family that throughout its life promoted and supported numerous business projects, always focused on cooperative values. The cooperatives Funcor (Elorrio) and Euskaldunak (Marcilla) were their main business initiatives. Esparza's idea was to make popular cooperativism, which worked with the idea of focusing on the people, not only on technology and the economy, but also on culture and education".
Andoni Esparza's project lasted until the 1970s. The association of the same name explains that there was a legal issue on which the termination was based: "In the Durango Court, a criminal complaint alleging monetary embezzlement was filed. Alleging the absence of sufficient grounds for rejection by the incumbent judge. In response to a second complaint, the substitute judge imposed a provisional prison sentence. In 1979, it was a trial and all the defendants were acquitted."
Intense interview with Miel A. Elustondo to Andoni Esparza: "It's too open here!"
Andoni Esparza Gallastegi Social Action Association
The day of 4 June, organized by the Andoni Esparza Gallastegi Social Action Association, was attended by the following entities: Municipality of Elorrio, Sociedad Laumunarrieta and Asociación Gerediaga.
The Andoni Esparza Association is a group founded in 2012: "The objective of the association is to give continuity to the trajectory undertaken by Andoni Esparza, building a Basque Country based on people and cooperativism, taking into account the characteristics and values of Basque existence".