Highlights from Ramón's Life

Thank you to everyone who sent their thoughts and prayers today. I appreciate it and I will thank you individually in time. Today's blog was mostly written by my father. He read it at the funeral. I added a little bit to it (in blue). Since it is late and I'm tired, I may be doing more editing on it, but I wanted to get it up for my relatives.

God and all his creation, including Ramón in it, is the most wonderful thing in the universe. He attended 2 or 3 years of formal education, but he always said he had no school. He was so wrong.

He was born on May 8, 1924. He started school in 1930 and in 1933 he was out of school to help support the family. He could read and write.

His dream to get out of the sugar cane industry and into a job where he could earn a living in a less stressful environment was fulfilled when he landed a job in Ramey Air Force Base in Aguadilla, PR. From that position he reached his first dream, to own his first $150.00 home, followed by his second dream, to have a wife and start a family. Now is 1945 and building towards his next dream, to come to New York and send for his wife.

His plane flight to New York was much different than today. He sat on a crate because there were no seats. He worked at whatever he had to to survive in a hostile NY environment. His food service industry career had just begun with great industry-in other words, he washed dishes. From there, he worked his way up to hotel bartender. By then, his wife Ana Grecia was in NY with him and their two children. Carmen joined them around 1948 and his son Ramon, Jr. soon after. He wanted more for his two children than he wanted for himself. He worked long and hard to give them the best he could and knew how.

Around the time when I came to NY in 1963, he and his brother German pioneered a home buying dream that most of my family thought was not possible. Thanks to him, with the least education, the impossible became possible and real.

Through all this, he became a devoted member of our town of Rincon's club "La Union Rincoeña." He worked as bartender on Saturdays and joined the dance floor during his breaks. He prided himself and surprised many with his ability to show off his dancing skills.

The 21st century was not as kind to him as the 20th century. A few grandchildren and great grandchildren in the picture, but he could mostly be and feel close to them through pictures and not the way he preferred-in person. He also regretted having lost his house.

During the past couple of years, he and I made up a little for the many years we missed being with each other. I greatly admire his tenacity in the pursuit of knowledge, experience and excellence in spite of the little schooling he had. His schooling was mostly homeschooling in the fashion that three of my grandchildren are homeschooled by my daughter Cristina. Ramón is an excellent sample of the homeschooling process. Thank you Carmen and Sylvia, for sharing your families with me and on behalf of my brother-uncle and I, my most sincere love.