OXNARD : He’s One Teacher Who Isn’t Forgotten

Sinclair Wall sat in his tiny office at Oxnard College, holding a box on his lap that was covered with Japanese postage stamps, and nibbled at the contents--Japanese crackers and cookies.

The care package from Japan is the third sent to him since early summer by a student he taught more than 10 years ago. Recently, he received a silk tie from another former student who came to Oxnard from Thailand.

Wall is teaching six classes of English as a second language at Oxnard College. He has taught students from Malaysia, Vietnam, Japan, Cambodia, Mexico and Honduras since he started teaching the course in 1975.

Motoko Koyama, the Japanese woman who sends him cookies and crackers, owns a school in Tokyo where English is taught to Japanese students. Last spring, after receiving a package from her and sharing it with one of his classes, he had each of his 45 students write Koyama a thank-you note.