Antonio Fernando Lulli Avalos

His Excellency Antonio Fernando Lulli Avalos, Ambassador of the Republic of Peru, Knight of the Sovereign Order of Malta, and recipient of the Grand Cross of the Orden El Sol del Peru, of Rockville, Maryland, died on October 14, 2017.

Ambassador Lulli was characterized by the zeal with which he tirelessly shared the Gospel of Our Lord Jesus Christ with family and friends, acquaintances, and frequently even strangers, especially as a spiritual son of St. Josemaria Escrivá.

As a career diplomat of Peru, Ambassador Lulli held several posts. At the very beginning of his career in 1948, when he was 26 years old and during his first foreign mission, he represented Peru at the approval by the United Nations of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Later he was the youngest person to reach the rank of Ambassador, and eventually became the Director of Cultural Affairs of the Peruvian Ministry of Foreign Affairs. While stationed in the Peruvian Embassy in Washington, he organized groundbreaking, nationwide exhibits promoting Peruvian art and history, including those of pre-Columbian gold at the National Gallery of Art, of colonial silver masterworks at the Smithsonian Institution, and of folk art at The Phillips Collection (with pieces which he himself had collected). Subsequently, he became an international official, and was the Director of the Representative Office in Peru of the Organization of American States, with a special focus on providing educational opportunities to the disadvantaged and on fostering entrepreneurship in the Peruvian shanty-towns.

Ambassador Lulli had a lifelong passion for collecting art, beginning when he was in college. He collected contemporary American and Latin American paintings and prints, rare books, rare maps, historical prints and watercolors, and Peruvian folk art. As a collector he befriended numerous artists, ranging from a world-famous painter in New York City to a folk artisan in the Andes of Peru.

Ambassador Lulli and his beloved wife, Elvira, belonged to Opus Dei since the early 1950s. They were key participants in its beginnings in Peru, and for the last quarter century they were the oldest surviving members in that country. They were also active and loyal supporters in the Washington DC area, and fulfilled a critical role in the founding of the Heights School in Potomac, MD.

Ambassador Lulli relished life. Apart from appreciating a full range of cultural enjoyments, he loved entertaining and above all connecting with people, was inspired by beauty and elegance, was a tennis champion in his youth, and in later life savored wines as part of the Confrérie des Chevaliers du Tastevin, among other things.

Ambassador Lulli was devoted to his wife and to his large family, which gave him great joy and for whom he made sacrifices during his life. He was married for 64 years to the late Elvira Delia Almenara de Lulli, and was the loving father of Antonio Jose (Annie), Elvira Maria (Salomon), Ana Maria (Felipe), Fernando Miguel (Nancy), Luis Felipe (Felicia), Juan Jose (Cheryl), Lucia Maria (Adrian), Jose Ignacio (Caroline), and Alvaro; and also Grandfather of Antonio Lulli, Salomon Gamero, Ita Elvira Gamero, Lourdes Bobbio, Fernando Lulli, Alejandro Lulli, Miguel Lulli, Sebastian Lulli, Cristina Lulli, Santiago Lulli, Ariana Lulli, Mia Lulli, Gabriella Lulli, Nicolas Lulli, Cecilia Lulli, Daniel Lulli, Alexander Lulli, Emilia Wright, Isabella Wright, Carolina Lulli, Andres Lulli, Sofia Lulli, Daniela Lulli, and Ashley Halek; as well as Great-grandfather of Alana Lulli, Evelyn Lulli, Annaliese Lulli, and Olivia Lulli.

Relatives and friends are invited to call at Joseph Gawler's Sons (5130 Wisconsin Ave. NW,

Washington, DC 20016) for the Wake on Wednesday, October 25 from 5 to 8 p.m. Holy Mass will be offered on Thursday, October 26, at 10:00 am at Little Flower Church (5607

Massachusetts Avenue, Bethesda, MD 20816). Burial will take place at noon at the Gate of Heaven Cemetery in Silver Spring, MD.

In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to the Catholic Information Center (1501 K Street NW, Suite 175, Washington, DC 20005) via the following link: https://cicdc.org/support/ . If making a donation please specify “Friends of Father Arne Panula Fund in memory of Antonio Lulli” in the Note field of the online form. An anonymous donor will be matching all contributions made.