Our beloved Rafael David Gonzalez, lovingly known as “Chapi, passed away on Tuesday, May 28th, 2024. He was a wonderful father, dedicated husband, loving grandfather, devout Catholic, avid reader, and a friend to all animals.
Rafael was born on June 26,1936 in Miramar in Havana, Cuba to Rafael Gonzalez Cobo and Virginia Perez Gutierrez. He loved growing up in Cuba and shared many fond memories of his childhood with his family and classmates at Colegio de Belén, a Jesuit preparatory school. Listening to him describe his childhood antics and stories from his life in Havana gave us a lot of entertainment and laughter throughout the years. He had a great sense of humor and was the best story teller.
In 1961, Rafael left his beloved Cuba. He lived in Miami for a short time, and then moved to New York. He was employed by The United Nations and always spoke fondly about his time there. He loved meeting people from all different countries and backgrounds. It was in New York that he met the love of his life, Ana Sanguinetty. Ana had also come to the United States after leaving Havana in 1961. They got married and went on to have five children.
Rafael worked for Pan Am for many years and traveled frequently during that time with his wife and children. He loved visiting new places, experiencing different cuisines, and meeting new people.
Rafael dedicated a lot of time and service to helping others. Whether it was volunteering at a soup kitchen or a homeless shelter, or bringing home a stray dog, injured bird, or a homeless person in need of a hot meal, he always found the time to help others. He hated violence (even in sports), and on several occasions even interfered to stop fights among strangers.
In addition to having five children, he and Ana went on to foster children in their home as well. He gave presentations in both English and Spanish on The Shroud of Turin in various churches throughout the Archdiocese of Newark. He trained catechists and taught Bible classes in many parishes. He participated in many retreats as a speaker. His faith was of tremendous importance to him and he often attended daily mass and participated in Eucharistic adoration often volunteering for time slots in the middle of the night. He always stressed that his family had to make sure to live their lives in a way that would ensure that they would all end up in heaven together for the rest of eternity.
Rafael was an avid reader and music enthusiast. He had a great collection of records and loved listening to all types of music. He had a special love for classical music. He would often take his children to symphonies and would quiz them on car rides asking what particular instruments they were hearing and teaching them about famous composers. He instilled a love of reading in all of his children. His collection of books is endless. Anywhere he went, his daily newspapers accompanied him as he never wanted to be somewhere without having reading material.
He was a very patriotic and proud American. Having fled Cuba, he was incredibly grateful for the freedoms offered in The United States, and he taught his children to never take those for granted.
Rafael was predeceased by his parents and his brother Ronald Benjamin Gonzalez. He is survived by his wife, Ana Gonzalez, their five children and their spouses: Ana & Andrew Panyko, Rebecca & Michael Purchla, Monica & Ivan Nieves, Rafael & Gabriella Gonzalez, and Diana & Lewis Weeks, his sister Virginia Disanto, his nephews Anthony Disanto, Ronald Gonzalez, and his niece, Virginia Madden. He was a loving grandfather to his 16 grandchildren: James, Emeric, Alban & Asher Panyko, Natalia, Alexa, & Sienna Nieves, Desmond & Zachary Purchla, Luciano, Liliana, Levi, Loriela, Lazarus, & Lydia Weeks, and Constantine Gonzalez. There are two additional grandchildren that will be arriving later this year!
Visitation for Rafael will be held on Sunday, June 2, 2024 from 1:00PM - 5:00PM at Goble Funeral Home 22 Main St., Sparta, NJ. Funeral mass will be celebrated 11AM, Monday, June 3rd at Our Lady of the Lake Roman Catholic Church 294 S. Sparta Ave., Sparta, NJ. Entombment will follow at St Joseph’s Cemetery, 138-152 Route 206 in Newton, NJ.
In Lieu of flowers, contributions in Rafael's memory may be made to: https://prodeinnonprofit.org/
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