Eduardo Pereiro

Eduardo Pereiro, known to everyone as Ed, Eddy or Vivo, was born in La Coloma, Pinar Del Rio, Cuba on April 12, 1939 to Manuel Pereiro and Luisa Pereiro. He was the youngest of 8 siblings. As the youngest sibling he was forever their little baby brother and the one that brought the party to all the family gatherings. He graduated from La Escuala de Comercio in Pinar Del Rio and immediately started working for Armacenes de Bibere de Luis Vega Castaño a wholesale distributor. While working at Luis Vega Castaño he met the love of his life, Luisa. She worked as a nail technician at the beauty shop next door to his work. He walked by the shop every morning and saw her sitting at her station and fell in love with her through the window. He finally had the courage one day to ask her for coffee and about a year later they wed on December 26, 1964, and had their first daughter Yadira, on November 1, 1965.

In 1966 Ed and Luisa knew they could no longer stay in Cuba. The communist regime had taken all the property they had, and they opted for freedom in America. Unfortunately, when the visas arrived from the Cuban the government, the visas were only in the names of Luisa, their young daughter Yadira and his mother-in-law Cuca. In June of 1966, with a heavy heart, he had to see his family fly away, not knowing if he would ever see them again.

His struggles were too many to recount but a few months after his family left, he received the notice that he would be able to leave Cuba, but it would not be a straight trip to the US. He would have to live in Spain until the US granted him his visa. When the day finally came for him to leave his homeland, he boarded a taxi with 2 other travelers that were also leaving Cuba. They were to stay in a hotel overnight in Havana and in the morning the driver would take them to the airport. As they approached Havana, a group of Castro’s military police pulled them over. The officer told them that someone needed to get out of the car so that he could take their place in the car to get to Havana. One of the travelers volunteered to give up his seat knowing he would never make it to the airport, but he did not want to cause problems for the other travelers. Ironically, about 3 miles into the ride, the driver of Ed’s car lost control and hit a tree. Ed was not severely hurt but the military policeman that had pulled them over died in the accident. He finally made it to Havana, and he was terrified that he would not be able to leave, but sure enough in the morning a new car picked him up and took him to the airport. He was thankful to be at the airport and anxious for his first airplane flight. He boarded not knowing what to expect but was thankful for a window seat just behind the wing. As the airplane took off and they were about 2 minutes into the flight, one of the engines on his side of the plane became engulfed in flames. He panicked and the pilot came on the loudspeaker and told the passengers that they would need to return to Cuba, and everyone would need to brace for an emergency landing. When he told this story he would tear up and say, “I couldn’t believe I was going to die this way – never being able to leave Cuba to see my family.” The pilot was able to land the plane without incident. The passengers were driven back to the hotel to wait for another plane. Late that night they received notification that they would be flying out the next morning. Traumatized, terrified and in tears Ed boarded a KLM flight the next morning for Madrid.

He stayed in Madrid for a few days and explored the city until his relatives from Narahio, La Coruña, Galicia picked him up. He lived with them for many months and traveled the country with them. Ed really enjoyed travel and adventures. He finally received his visa, and he boarded a flight in Madrid and finally on April 25, 1967 he touched down in the United States through New York City and made his way to Miami. He reunited with his family that he hadn’t seen in well over a year in Miami.

His brothers-in-law, Miguel and Macho were able to secure a job at a shipyard that built yachts called Norseman. Although he was thankful for being in the United States, he longed for a more serene living experience that reminded him of La Coloma. On a very random Sunday, he traveled with his family to Naples to visit friends. Naples was a sleepy town back in 1968. That day he decided to make Naples his home. He immediately secured a job with WT Grant Company, as first a floor cleaner then was promptly promoted to stock boy and eventually, he became the Assistant Store Manager. During that time, he also worked at Kelly’s Fish House as a bus boy at night to provide extra money for his family. He loved working at Kelly’s and to this day it holds a very special place in his families’ hearts – celebrating anniversaries and birthdays.

On January 30, 1970, his daughter Elizabeth was born, and the family now became 6 with Cuca, his mother-in-law, and her husband Rene. The 6 of them were inseparable – that’s the way he liked things.

On October 31, 1975, WT Grant went into bankruptcy and Ed lost his job and all the stock options he had accumulated with the company. It was a very tragic day for the family – all was lost. With help from a dear friend, he secured a job with Naples Community Hospital. He started as Business Office Manager, then moved to Internal Audit, Head of Internal Audit and eventually he was given the opportunity to open up several satellite urgent care centers in Golden Gate and East Naples. He retired from Naples Community Hospital in 1994 and had the opportunity to work with the Hussey Family and New England MRI. He opened up MRI Centers here in Florida and in the New England area. During that time, he started a medical billing business his youngest daughter runs today.

One thing he learned with the bankruptcy of WT Grant’s is that you should always have a back up plan.

In 1976 he read a real estate investment book that changed his life. He realized that the only way to build equity as a poor man was to invest in real estate. He started taking any extra money he had and buying vacant residential and commercial lots all over Collier County. He eventually built homes on lots and started renting these homes. Ultimately purchasing apartment buildings and commercial properties. He loved the challenge of investing and watching equity grow. He would always say, “If only I got to this country earlier.”

Ed’s passion aside from real estate was home videos and planning vacations. He took his family on great summer vacations. He would plan trips a year in advance. The trips always included extended family. His sister Cointa and her family, his brother Manolo and his family, or his niece Tere and her husband Carlos. He loved being with his family and how he looked forward to all the trips and the planning. He would video the whole trip and then when we got home, we relived the trip once again. We cherish all those videos and are so thankful for his vision to make them. We have videos of all family reunions, Christmas, New Years Eves, birthdays, communions, baptisms and weddings. They are a family treasure.

He will always be remembered as a great dancer. He loved a good dancing party. His wife and him danced beautifully together and he would always look in her eyes as they danced. His positive outlook on life was infectious and he never had a mean or judgmental comment to say about anyone. He would always say “You can always learn at least one thing from anyone. Just listen.” He was always reading, and he craved learning. He will be forever missed but will always be in our hearts.

Ed is survived by his wife of 58 years, Luisa, his daughters, Yadira Vega and son-in-law John, his daughter Elizabeth Ross and son-in-law Gary, his grandchildren Olivia, Sofia, Philip and Jack. He is also survived by his sisters, Aquelina, Olga, Cointa, Hortensia, his brother Vicente, and many nieces and nephews. He was preceded in death by his parents Manuel and Luisa Pereiro, his sister Amelia and his brother Manolo. In lieu of flowers please send all donations to the Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s Research – [email protected]

A visitation for Eduardo will be held Saturday, June 24, 2023 from 11:00 AM to 1:25 PM at Hodges Funeral Home at Naples Memorial Gardens, 525 111th Ave N, Naples, Florida 34108, followed by a funeral service at 1:30 PM.

Fond memories and expressions of sympathy may be shared at www.hodgesfhatnaplesmg.com for the Pereiro family.