Fernando López Arvelo, honorary president of the Fedola Group, received yesterday in Adeje the affection and affection of the authorities and economic and social agents, who recognized his business work at the inauguration of a street that bears his name, next to the GF Victoria, the last great hotel bet of the Tenerife company.
The Tacorontero businessman verified that he is one of those people who leave a special mark in his path, and this was stated by those attending the event, the speeches and the applause. The honoree was not without reason when he addressed those present to say that “these things usually arrive late, but this time it has not been like that and it has arrived on time.” At 83 years old, he enjoyed it surrounded by his wife, Candelaria Fuentes, his children, including Victoria López (president of the group) and his grandchildren.
In his speech, López Arvelo, Taburiente Award 2018 for the Business Career of the DIARIO DE AVISOS Foundation, described as “great honor” being part of the street map of a municipality that hosts “the best tourist area in the Canary Islands, in Spain and I don’t know if of Europe”. His group has four hotels in this town (Fañabé, Gran Costa Adeje, Isabel and Victoria), which have a total of 4,000 beds and employ 1,100 people.
“If we were born again, we would surely do the same in Adeje, the municipality where we concentrate the great heritage of Fedola and which is part of who we are”, he assured, to end his speech by appealing to a musical success by Alejandro Sanz: “We are tacoronteros and, as the song says, our hearts are broken: Tacoronte gave us life, but Adeje has given us the past, the present and the great illusion of the future”. Lastly, the businessman thanked his family for their love and ability to work, as well as the City Council’s gesture of naming a road in the tourist area after him.
On behalf of the family, a grandson of the honorary president of Fedola spoke.
“These things usually arrive late, but this time it has not been like that”, Fernando López Arvelo thanked Adeje
For his part, the mayor of Adeje, José Miguel Rodríguez Fraga, highlighted “the commitment of Don Fernando and his family, who have accompanied the Costa Adeje destination practically since its inception, being an example of effort, work and permanent dedication”, so who recognized, as the highest representative of the Corporation, “the pride of having him in this municipality.”
Rodríguez Fraga praised the “family effort” to “fight from scratch and take risks every day” and valued the ability of the directors of the Fedola Group to “constantly reinvent themselves”, because in tourism “to stop is to die”. In that sense, he stressed that Adeje “could not be insensitive to someone who takes risks to help promote a first-class tourism product.”
Francisco José Calzadilla, grandson of the honoree, also spoke on behalf of the family, thanking his grandfather for instilling the culture of effort and teaching that “difficult situations pass and the best moments always come.”
The inauguration of the street was attended by prominent personalities, including the president of the Cabildo, Pedro Martín, and representatives of the hotel management, the consular body and the Army. If the act began with the interpretation of the bolero Contigo aprendí, it culminated with an emotional folía dedicated to the honoree. Shortly after, the first cars premiered on Fernando López Arvelo street.
