TAMPA NATIVE DEDICATED HIS LIFE TO YBOR’S HERITAGE
By Christian M. Wade
Tampa Tribune
August 12, 2009
TAMPA – He dedicated his life to preserving Ybor City’s heritage and
architectural legacy.
Henry Fernandez, a lifelong Tampa resident, World War II veteran
and optometrist by trade, died on Sunday, less than a week after
celebrating his 84th birthday.
Fernandez was born in 1925 to Enrique Paine and Maria Luisa
Fernandez. He attended Jefferson High School, where he met his future
wife, Olga Martinez. At 17, he enlisted in the U.S. Navy and served
as a radioman gunner on Pitilou Island in the Philippines.
After the war ended, he attended the Southern College of Optometry
in Memphis and opened a practice in Ybor City.
Along with other Ybor City leaders including Cesar Gonzmart, he
helped establish the Barrio Latino Commission, the volunteer board
that oversees designs and development in the historical district.
He also founded the Krewe of the Knights of Sant’ Yago, which was
modeled after an ancient group rooted in Santiago de Compostela
in Spain, and established a nonprofit educational foundation that
provides scholarships to Latino children.
Tampa Councilman Charlie Miranda, who remembers Fernandez from his
childhood, described him as a "good-natured man" who cared deeply
about his Tampa roots.
"He was one of those people who knew what they wanted and went after
it," he said.
Fernandez is survived by is survived by his daughters, Diana and
Debra; his son-in-law, Duane Fields; his grandson, Jason and his wife,
Mignon; and three great-grandsons, Jackson, Sebastian and Gryphon.
A memorial service will be held at 5 p.m. Friday, at Boza & Roel
Funeral Home, 4730 N. Armenia Ave., in Tampa.
In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Krewe of Sant’ Yago
Education Foundation, in care of Dr. Rex Damron at P.O. Box 5037,
Tampa, FL 33675.
Reporter Christian M. Wade can be reached at (813) 259-7679.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress
