Victor Manuel Alvarez, born July 24, 1919, entered into rest at the age of 87 on 1/19/07. He is survived by his daughters; Quina & Victoria Alvarez, son-in-law Rick Reynolds, & grandchildren; Leyna & Jared Reynolds. Victor was born in Guines, Cuba, the 5th of 8 children, the son of Joaquin & Ramona Alvarez. He attended primary & middle school in Guines, working in his family’s general store from the age of 10 through high school and in his uncle’s rice mill/bakery.
Victor graduated from high school in Guines in 1937 and attended Havana University in Cuba, where he achieved a doctorate in law and a Ph. D in philosophy and letters with an emphasis in history. He practiced law in Cuba. Victor immigrated to the U.S. in 1950. While learning English, he worked in a knitting mill & machine factory in Waynesboro, Pennsylvania. He began his career as a Spanish teacher in the U.S. at Gettysburg College in Pennsylvania, & later taught at Judson School, in Scottsdale. Arizona.
In 1957 Victor moved to California to teach at Hollister High School, where he also served as advisor to the Spanish Club. In 1959 he married his late wife Frances Alvarez, & they raised their family in Hollister. Victor retired from teaching in 1981. He lived in Hollister 46 years before he & Frances moved to Sacramento (2003) to be closer to their daughters.
In Cuba, Victor had also been a competitive long-distance runner & enjoyed movies, dancing, basketball, swimming, & raising birds. As a teacher in the U.S., he was admired personally. Victor had a zest for life, & a thirst for knowledge. He enjoyed reading, the study of geography & world history. Victor loved to travel, & learn about languages & cultures. While in Pennsylvania, he learned Greek, as well as English, and served as interpreter for his Greek coworkers. Victor was loving, generous, & had a wonderful sense of humor.
In California, he enjoyed gardening, shopping, & his research in health care & business.
A memorial service celebrating his life will be held at the East Lawn Memorial Chapel in Sacramento, CA., at 2:00 P.M. on Saturday, 2/17/07, at 4300 Folsom Blvd., with a reception following. The phone # is (916)732-2000. For questions, please leave messages for Victor’s daughters at the above phone #.
