‘Phenomenal’ Newport Heights teacher retiring after 29 years

John Daffron is known for his passions in life: educating children and playing music with his surf band.

Parents and students know him as Mr. Daffron at Newport Heights Elementary School, where he has taught for 29 years.

Many in the Newport Beach community know him as the lead singer and guitarist of the Fabulous Nomads.

Daffron will retire from the Newport Beach school Thursday because he has a lung disease. Within the next few days, he’ll prepare for a move with his wife, Kirsten, to Colorado, where the air is cleaner, he said.

A substitute teacher will fill in for him until the school year ends this month, he said.

“One thing about my job is with almost 30 years of teaching, no two days have been completely the same because of the dynamic of those kids,” Daffron said this week. “I love my kids. They’re funny and make me laugh and smile every day.”

Daffron learned to fuse his two passions and dedicated about 30 minutes of class time once a week for sing-alongs. On Wednesday, he invited fellow third-grade teacher Randy Fox and his students to participate in the last sing-along.

Playing acoustic guitars, Daffron and Fox took requests from the children, some of whom congregated on the floor while others sat on desks. They performed songs such as “Three Blind Mice,” “Oh My Darling, Clementine” and Elvis Presley’s “Hound Dog” as students sung along. Some danced, mimicking Presley’s twists.

Third-graders Ian McDermott and Charlie Bocks praised Daffron’s teaching skills, saying they loved learning how to use the “shortcuts” he taught them when multiplying and dividing.

“I’m sad he’s leaving,” said third-grader Avery Barnette. “I wish he could stay longer.”

Though Daffron struggled to learn math when he was in school, he said it’s been his favorite subject to teach, especially when he sees the “light bulb go off” in his students.

Even outside the classroom, Daffron is a leader, said his Fabulous Nomads bandmate Scott Fitzpatrick. Daffron would encourage the band to perform for free for school fundraisers and charities like the Make-A-Wish Foundation, Fitzpatrick said.

The Fabulous Nomads performed their final show Sunday, but Fitzpatrick said they won’t be gone forever. Whenever Daffron visits Newport Beach, they’ll try booking more shows, he said.

Parents and Newport Heights faculty members described Daffron — a former Teacher of the Year at the school — as a “phenomenal” educator who took time to learn about his students and help “bring out their individuality.”

Some parents requested Daffron as their children’s teacher, which resulted in long-lasting relationships.

“We’ve been at Newport Heights for the past 14 years, and the entire school and community will feel it when he’s gone,” said Allison Olmstead, whose three children were taught by Daffron.

Olmstead said her two oldest kids still rave about their experience with him.

Daffron’s interest in music also helped him form a bond with Brock McCann, a Newport Heights third-grader who was struck and killed by a trash truck a year ago when he was riding his bike home from school.

The two were avid music fans and often exchanged CDs. Daffron said he recalls Brock discussing James Brown, Muddy Waters and Ray Charles. Daffron suggested Eric Clapton and Lynyrd Skynyrd.

On May 25, the anniversary of Brock’s death, the school honored Brock and his parents, Murphy and Bernardette McCann, through music and a tree-planting ceremony. Daffron performed “Puff, the Magic Dragon” by folk group Peter, Paul and Mary as a tribute to the 8-year-old.

“That’s the hardest thing I’ve ever done,” he said. “Brock and I were a good match.”

Bernardette McCann said Daffron’s tribute was touching. He has a “unique ability to form genuine and caring interests with his students,” she said.

“He truly would know his students, and I think that’s missing in so many others,” she said.

Olmstead said parents want a teacher who knows, understands and loves their children, and Daffron embodies that.

“I was already a huge fan of him,” she said, but his tribute to Brock “was beyond anything you could ask for in a teacher.”

Priscella.Vega@latimes.com

Twitter: @vegapriscella