Miguel Ángel Fumanal Saura, impeller of the Famous Caravan of Women of Plan (Huesca), an initiative that went around the world, has died suddenly because of a 66-year-old infarction.
Death surprised him on the night of January 3 at home, casually 37 years and a day after the plan’s boys saw on television the women’s caravan movie, which was the beginning of an initiative that was made world famous, with
Miguel Angel Fumanal as a spokesman and visible head.
He was born in Plan in 1955, he was married to Luba, of Ukrainian origin, and leaves a sister, María José, and two nieces, sun and heaven.
When he suffered the infarction he was at home with his sister and his brother-in-law, who spend a few days of vacation in plan.
Fumanal was the one who put a voice and face and even his telephone number in the announcement in the press, inviting women married to visit plan and the entire Gistaín Valley.
The idea to solve the problem of singles or ‘Maziellos’ emerged on January 2, 1985 while the waiters, gathered in the village bar, saw in TVE the film of the far west ‘caravan of women’ (1951).
They wanted to do the history of the film and put an advertisement for words that cost them 75 pesetas that they paid a neckline: “Women are needed between 20 and 40 years, for marriage, for people of the Aragonese Pyrenees.
20 to 22 hours. ”
And as contact the phone number of FUMANALA, which was president of the association created to organize the successive caravans, in total five, of which up to 40 marriages in the valley came out.
Miguel Ángel, then with 29 years old, had no intention of marry, but herself to help in the people who wanted to do it, as explained by José María Fantova, another of the drivers, with which he chatted on the eve of death.
In Diario Diario del Alto Aragón, Fantova recalled that FUNCALA “was the visible head, who faced without expecting anything. We did not expect that repercussion, it came out and it had to face it. It was a very important person in the whole process and
who has done a commendable work by the people, because he loved plan. ”
The wedding of Miguel Ángel Fumanal arrived years later with Luba, originally from Ukraine, which he met at the Hotel de Cerler where he still works.
He was the president of the association created to organize the plan caravan, but between appointment and appointment and appearance in the media, he continued to attend his livestock in the Gistaín Valley.
He had formed in Barbastro’s scolopes and in the Huesca Agrarian Training School.
They assure that he was always willing to help whoever needed him and was very dear, especially among the elderly.
It was affable and conciliatory and, maybe therefore, the City Council appointed him in 1995 Plan Peace Judge.
The first caravan of women was held on 7, 8 and 9 March 1985 and 80 women attended by various points of Spain attended.
Served as an example to similar initiatives that are celebrated in Peoples of Spain emptied
The party lasted for three days, with verbenas, dance and performances, to promote an adequate environment and that cupid will obrary the miracle.
The event attracted journalists from all over Spain, surpassed the organizers who did not expect that in a town of just 200 inhabitants on the day of the party there were thousands of people, up to 10,000 according to some sources.
To welcome so many people, a great tent was mounted and all the plan town turned to host and entertain the marks.
The budget of the event was almost four million pesetas, very high for the time, and was financed with a help from the Provincial Provincial Council of Huesca and the rest left the tickets, bar bars and the sale of t-shirts and dressing machines.
The third year the construction of a pavilion was raised, which welcomed the last two festivals, one of them with the stellar performance of the Puturrú Group of Fuá, who would later launch the popular song the Boys of Plan.
On the occasion of the 25th anniversary, a monolith was raised that recalls the ephemeris, and at the age of 30, a party was held, similar to previous ones coinciding with round dates.
In addition to the pavilion, fame and love stories, the caravans have managed to have maintained the population in plan and in the Gistaín Valley.
The town now has about 220 inhabitants, 330 if the nuclei of Saravillo and Serveto are counted, which belong to the municipality, dedicated for the most part to services and tourism.
The Sobrarbe region, to which they belong Plan and the Gistaín Valley, has a density of just three inhabitants per square kilometer.
A year before the first caravan, only three children were born on a total population of 600 inhabitants and two years later the births tripled.
The school is maintained, there are several rural houses, rental apartments, bars and several shops, pharmacy, bakery, doctor and, as some neighbors say, “now there are people from outside, children and boys.”
