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The Las Flores Basque Club, in the province of Buenos Aires, has run since its founding in a house donated by Paulo Vidaurreta.  During its 22^nd anniversary celebration, the club inaugurated a conference room and unveiled a plaque with the name of the person who donated the space to ensure the club’s development.

Las Flores, Argentina.   Last Saturday, January 27th, the Basque Club celebrated another birthday with a special activity.  Accompanied by a large number of members and children and grandchildren of the honoree, the club’s board inaugurated a conference room and named it “Don Paulo Vidaurreta.”  During the event a plaque was unveiled, with Basque music provided by Paula Marcus and Agustin Roca.  Club president, Federico Inchauspe also addressed the crowd.

Club sources said that the new room will allow the club to carry out its activities vetter.  Club vice-president, Monica Arrazubieta, explained that Don Paulo Vidaurreta was born on January 27, 1902 in Rosas, Partido de Las Flores, and that he was the fifth of ten children.  Their father was from Iruña-Pamplona, Francisco Vidaurreta, and their mother, Sabina Gonzalez, “was originally from Castilla La Vieja.”  Pablo Vidaurreta left school in the second grade to begin working in the country, especially on dairies, where he dedicated his entire life.  When he was 23, after his mother passed away, he took care of his three sisters.  In 1937, he married, Juana Isabel Rivarola, and they had four children: Ana María, María Otilia, Paulo Jesús and Mario.

In the words of Arrazubieta, “Don Paulo was pure Basque-Argentinean, dedicated passionately to dairies.  He was always excited about branding, and after a good lunch he would ride steers, calves, and rope them to put his Basque seal on them, for a good game of mus.  He was a member of the Agricultural cooperative, and was one of the first in the Rural Society and the first president of the Cooperative at School 27.  At the end of the 70s, he left the country to come to live in the city, to this house that we are dedicating today, where he lived until he was 85.  He knew how to transmit the Basque feeling to his children, to Oti and Lito, who after leaving this house, continued to emulate his values, his way of thinking and his way of life.”

In 2018 the Basque club in Las Flores will continue with its usual activities and spreading the Basque culture in its city and surroundings.