Felix Juan Colon-Palacio

Felix was the eldest child born to Felix and Victoria Colon Collazo in Aibonito, Puerto Rico. As the family grew he was joined by Hilda, Carlos, Luis, Lucy, Mirta, Paco and Norma. He enlisted in the National Guard in Puerto Rico in late 1955, moved to New York City and enlisted in the US Army in 1956, then enlisted in the US Air Force in 1961. He served as an SP providing law enforcement, guarding aircraft, and escorting VIPs where his bilingualism was often essential. His duties took him to San Antonio TX, Tampa FL, Seville (Spain), Isabella (Puerto Rico), Oslo (Norway), Sacramento CA, Bitburg (Germany), and Vacaville CA. Along the way he met and married Torill Syversen and they were later joined by their son Felix Robert “Robi” and daughter Therese. After an amicable split with Torill Felix married Marie Colon, whom he had known previously in New York. In 1982 he retired from the Air Force and began a second career as a Corrections Officer at San Quentin State Penitentiary. He served in all areas from “Gen Pop” to Death Row to the front gate, which was his favorite duty. During this time he and Marie divorced and he married Nelta Aguirre Ortiz, whom he had known before leaving Puerto Rico in his late teens. As a Corrections Officer, Felix met many characters on both sides of the bars. He had the incredible honor of meeting (and hugging) Mother Teresa when she came to visit the inmates on Death Row. He strongly believed that every person is an individual, not a label, and he made sure to treat each person he met with empathy and respect. Felix and Nelta moved back to Puerto Rico when he retired in 1996. Although the marriage ended several years later they remained the best of friends until Nelta was called to Heaven. In 2022 Felix moved to Spokane to be close to his children. In these two years he has made countless friends and spent many happy days with his family in Washington. We miss him so much, but every day we had with him was a gift and we are blessed. Te amamos, Papo!