Candida O. Mulford

Our mother was born on August 29, 1936, the eldest of seven children born to Antonio Orocú and Amelia Araúz. From an early age, she shared the responsibilities of the home and the hardships of work alongside her parents.

At seventeen, she moved to the capital in search of wider horizons. While working there, she met and married Jaime L. Martínez Benítez, a U.S. soldier from Santurce, Puerto Rico, who served during the Korean Wear. Together, they raised six children – Carmen Alicia, Rosemary, Jaime Luis, Jacqueline Rose, Penny Stella, and Karen Ann – in the Panama Canal Zone before separating in 1972 and divorcing in 1974. She later married Thomas D. Mulford, a member of the Coast Guard from Seattle, and the father to Daniel and Sarah. They remained together until Tom’s passing in 2014.

In total, she was blessed with 15 grandchildren and 18 great grandchildren.

Though she lived through difficult times, she enjoyed many moments of happiness and remained kind to everyone she knew. She will be deeply missed by all of us, and her love will love on forever.