Celedonio Melian

He was born in the Canary Islands, Spain, the ninth of nine children of Miguel and Angela Melián. He was nicknamed Nono, he said because he was the ninth child. We suspect it was actually because his parents had to be reminding him "no, no-this" and "no, no-that," before he got into any more of his mischievous trouble. He would proudly regale us with tales of his childhood deeds, which were always his brothers' ideas. Including one story of his head amazingly being stuck between bars of a metal bed.

Cel made friends easily, and he loved to talk. He loved a good tale and loved to tell them. He worked hard all his life, starting at age five herding goats on his family's farm. His biggest dream was to become a U.S. citizen, which he achieved after more than ten years, at the age of 42. His other passion was for cars and all things mechanical. He retired after nearly 50 years in the transmission business. In his retirement years, he took great joy in gardening and spending as much time as possible with family and his grandchildren. He had many rich and fulfilling years, where he traveled and lived in Washington, Texas and Georgia.

He is survived by his wife of 50 years, Miriam; two children, Virginia and Omar; and four grandchildren, Melina, Mason, Josefina and Sergio.

He will be sorely missed by all who knew him, but remembered fondly and with love.