Thursday, October 2, 2014

Vicente Rojo Benito 1931 - 2014

Vicente with his family about 1937
(he's the boy on the left side of this photograph)
Sinovas, Burgos, Spain during the Spanish Civil War

My father-in-law, Vicente Rojo Benito, passed away recently.  He was born 26 January 1931 in Sinovas, in the Province of Burgos, Spain, the son of Moises Rojo Torres and Anacleta Benito Alvaro.  His father was assassinated in 1936 during the Spanish Civil War, and Vicente was sent to live with the Jesuit fathers. He grew up traveling around Spain and South America.  

In the 1950s he was a secretary for the United Nations in New York City.  He married in 1960 in Madrid, and brought his bride to New York.  My husband was born in Manhattan.  In the 1970s Vicente removed to San Juan, Puerto Rico to work in the newspaper business.  He later became a professor of geography and Latin American history in San Juan, and wrote a travel column for the newspaper. Over the years he authored several books on history and travel, and wrote travel columns for his local senior center's newsletter.   Vicente passed away on 29 August 2014 in Madrid after a long battle with Parkinson's disease.  


1961 Madrid Spain, wedding photo



1961, New York City, my husband was born
while Vicente was working as a secretary at the United Nations


This painting of Vicente now hangs in our house in Manchester, New Hampshire.
It was painted about 1961, and Vicente wears his United Nations lapel pin


1978, my husband and his Dad
on his high school graduation day



1983 At our wedding, Holden, Massachusetts


1987, the year our daughter was born



2005 San Juan, Puerto Rico


2013 At my daughter's wedding, Madrid, Spain


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The URL for this post is
http://nutfieldgenealogy.blogspot.com/2014/10/vicente-rojo-benito-1931-2014.html

Copyright (c) 2014, Heather Wilkinson Rojo

4 comments:

  1. A lovely memorial! Thank you for sharing.

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  2. Heather:

    What a nice tribute to your later father-in-law!

    My sincere condolences to your husband, you, your daughter, and the rest of your family.
    _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

    Life is eternal and love is immortal; And death is only a horizon, And a horizon is nothing save the limit of our sight. --Rossiter W. Raymond

    As time passes, gradually we move toward the day when the comfort of our memories is greater than the sorrow of our loss. -- Unknown.

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  3. Beautiful write-up and photos. He such a warm smile. Condolences to your husband. Thank you very much for sharing. I'm sure your family appreciates it.

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  4. Mi pésame.....una gran persona en tiempos de una España triste.

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