George Balbi

George Emilio Balbi, beloved husband, father, grandfather, great grandfather and friend, peacefully passed away on the morning of December 27, 2014 at the age of 86. George was born on May 28, 1928, in Havana, Cuba, to Miguelina Alvarez Guerra and Isidro Balbi González.

George came to New York City with his parents in the 1930s and went on to attend the University of Miami as one of the first members of his family to attend college. He earned an A.B. in Spanish and upon graduating, moved back to Cuba, where he started working for Pan American World Airways and soon married Blanca, his wife of 60 years. In 1955, they had their first son, Howard. The family left Cuba in 1960, and settled in New York City in 1961, soon to be joined by George’s sister-in-law, Isabel Fonseca. Their youngest son, Kenneth, was born in 1963.

George continued his career in the airline industry, working for Air France, VIASA and Aerolíneas Argentinas. The family moved to Montreal, Canada, until they once again settled in New York, in George’s final home in Flushing, in 1969. As a regional manager for VIASA U.S. and Canada, George was able to travel with his family around the world, visiting over 80 countries. George retired from his final job at Circle Air Freight/EGL at the United Nations at the age of 77.

George was a man who valued honesty, history, and remembrance, and was an active community leader both before and after his retirement. He was always proud of where he came from, and passionately encouraged those around him to celebrate their cultures and histories. George was a founder of the Comite Pro Desfile Hispano de Queens and was the president from 1978 to 1979, was a founder of and was the second president of the Hispanic Association at St. Michael’s Church in Flushing, and led the 1990 initiative to conserve Central Park South’s monuments of Latin American leaders, including Cuban hero, José Martí and Venezuelan military leader, Simón Bolívar. Amongst other awards, George has received proclamations from New York City Mayor Rudolph Giuliani and Mayor Michael Bloomberg related to Hispanic cultural affairs. Though always immensely proud of his Cuban heritage, George embraced New York City as his home.

After battling cancer, George spent the last few years of his life at home, surrounded by loved ones. In addition to his wife Blanca, George is survived by his sister-in-law, Isabel,

his two sons, Howard and Kenneth, and their wives, Patricia and Julie, respectively. He is also the dearly loved grandfather of Christopher and his wife Karen, Heather, Danielle and Joshua, and his great granddaughter, Emily Grace.

Visitation will be held at Quinn-Fogarty Funeral Home, at 192-15 Northern Boulevard in Flushing, on Tuesday, December 30, 2014, from 2 p.m. to 5 p.m., and from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. The funeral mass will be celebrated by Bishop Octavio Cisneros at St. Michael’s Church at 136-76 41st Avenue in Flushing on Wednesday, December 31, 2014 at 9:30 a.m. George will be laid to rest at Mount St. Mary Cemetery.