Al - or “Buster” as he was soon nicknamed - was born January 8, 1922 in Newman Grove, Nebraska. He joined the army during WWII, served in the paratroopers, and later finished his college education at San Jose State, where he noticed Ernestine Lavagnino from San Juan Bautista, California. They were married in 1950, and raised five children in San Luis Obispo where he taught Business in high school until 1965.
He joined the faculty in the Business Department at Fresno State College while continuing to work on his Ph.D. at UCLA. Al was a huge supporter of the Bulldogs and enjoyed the volunteer task of being the NCAA faculty representative.
A devout Catholic, he supported St. Anthony’s growth and donated generously to both the church and the school. They both enjoyed retirement by traveling a great deal, researching genealogy and proudly supporting the endeavors of their children. The hardest time in his life was not the great depression, nor WWII, but losing the love of his life, Ernestine, 10 years ago and rapidly losing his memory shortly thereafter. Despite this, his sense of humor never left him. People found Al to be a kind, genuinely nice man who seemed only to need a lot of ice cream to sustain him. A believer in prayer, all he would ask anyone for was a prayer for Ernestine and him.
Al is survived by sons, Mike (Candee), Pat, Tom (Cinthya), Mark (Carlos) and daughter, Anne (Edward); six grandchildren and six great grandchildren.
Graveside Services will be held at San Juan Bautista Cemetery, San Juan Bautista, CA.
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