Alberto Candelario Del Calvo

ALBERTO C. del CALVO was born on a farm near the town of Quivican, 25 miles south of Havana on 2 February 1923, where his family were long-time farmers and cattlemen, living in Cuba for many generations. His parents Pancho and Emilia moved the family to the Vedado district of Havana, because of the Great Depression and wanting to get his youngest children a good education, where Alberto enjoyed the city and attended the University of Havana, earning a doctorate and law degree in 1947.  He was quite active in the political life in college, especially with the Ortodoxo movement, serving as the Minister for Foreign Relations, where he came to know and detest Fidel Castro. In 1952, after marrying the love of his life, Mirza, and having two sons,  Alberto enjoyed a successful business and corporate law practice in Havana for the next 14 years, while also serving as attorney for the Cattlemen’s Association of Havana Province, where his father Pancho was president.  Alberto strove to better the lives of small farmers and cattlemen and he and his father established model agricultural cooperatives, which flourished until their abolishment by Che Guevara.  Additionally, Alberto was an investor and partner in an auto assembly plant, and with his brother, Francisco, founded a successful life insurance company. An ill-fated restaurant partnership, resulted in the family pantry full of leftover wine bottles. Seeking freedom for himself and his family, Alberto reluctantly left Cuba on the 8th of November 1960, but retained the return Pan Am ticket, convinced that Communism would fail in Cuba.  He and his family lived frugally in Miami Beach for a year before the Bay of Pigs proved to him a return to Cuba would take time.  Alberto and his family settled in North Miami for five years, while he worked at a picture frame factory for $1.25 an hour.  Mirza was a laundress for .85 cents an hour. Taking advantage of the Johnson Administration program training Cuban lawyers for the teaching profession, Alberto eventually earned a Master’s Degree in English from Mount St. Mary’s College in Los Angeles and moved to nearby Burbank. Alberto enjoyed teaching English-as-a-Second Language at Nightingale Jr. High in Los Angeles and later trained to become a counselor. He ended his 27 years in education at Starr King Junior High, retiring at 69.  “Papillo” had great passion and enthusiasm for teaching, counseling and being around kids.  For many years Alberto coached an Echo Park soccer team.  Alberto seemed to have indefatigable energy, teaching night school and summer school for many years, as well. In 1978, Alberto, along with fellow educators, created the Cuban American Teachers’ Association.  For the next thirty-five years, CATA was Alberto’s passion.  He wanted to promote in Cuban youth a love and recognition for their heritage and to encourage university study through CATA’s scholarship program. Alberto was thoroughly engaged in Cuban social events and enjoyed mingling with his many friends in clubs such as the Guineros and Club de Manzanillo.  Always seeking to promote his Cuban heritage, Alberto was especially active in various organizations: Cuban Lawyers-in-Exile; Junta Patriotica Cubana; Los Marteanos; Club del Domino; Alpha 66. He also attended rallies and events from varied institutions whose goals were for the liberation of Cuba.  This was his passion and goal and although he did not live to see a free Cuba, at least he outlived Fidel. An incredibly broadminded individual,  Alberto was uncommonly generous, always looking at the positive, and extremely family oriented.  He was proud of his two sons, always mentioning that Alberto Jr. adopted his profession in the United States while Jorge Alberto followed him as a corporate and business lawyer. Always thanking his father, Pancho, Alberto was dedicated and devoted to education and politics. He was grateful for a new life and liberty and admired the U.S.,  yet could always discern when a policy was in America’s interest but perhaps not the world’s.  While he tended to vote Republican, he had admiration for Jerry Brown and Hillary Clinton. An original thinker and a spiritual man of deep faith, Alberto considered himself a good but inactive Freemason.  He always said that the important thing was to give honor to God--and the way to do it was totally irrelevant, but that there were myriad ways to do so, such as marveling nature.  To Alberto, a good atheist has as much a chance to go to Heaven as a good religious person; their “acts in this lifetime” distinguished them, he always said. Alberto is survived by his brother Francisco, his wife Mirza and by his two sons  Alberto and Jorge Alberto, their wives Gerine Ongkeko and Pam Porter  and grandchildren Marina, Nicole, Alejandro, Andrew and Lucas.  Alberto also has two great-grandchildren, Marina’s children, August and TRex, and numerous nieces and nephews. Funeral Service

Mission Hills Catholic Mortuary

Saturday, September 02, 2017 1:00 PM - 2:00 PM 111600 Stranwood Avenue Mission Hills, CA 91345 Directions Interment

San Fernando Mission Catholic Cemetery

Saturday, September 02, 2017 2:30 PM - 3:00 PM 111600 Stranwood Avenue Mission Hills, CA 91345 Directions