Juan Raul Quintana

Quintana, Juan Raul, 90, of St. Petersburg, passed away peacefully on the afternoon of Saturday, June 16, 2012, at Bon Secours Maria Manor Nursing Care Center. He was born in Jaguay Grande, Cuba on July 12, 1921, the third youngest of fourteen children to Loreto and Meletina Quintana. In addition to his parents, he was preceded in death by nine of his thirteen siblings. He is survived by his loving wife of 58 years Antinea (Tina), sisters Catalina, Celina and Iraida and a brother Cosme. He is also survived by his daughter Marie Quintana of Dallas, TX, sons Raul Quintana (Victoria) of St. Petersburg and Juan Carlos Quintana of Oakland, CA and five grandchildren Daniel, Brian and Katie Cummiskey of Dallas, TX and Catherine and Nicolas Quintana of St. Petersburg along with numerous nieces and nephews. He came to St. Petersburg in 1999 from New Orleans, LA where he had lived since his arrival from Cuba in 1961. From humble beginnings in rural central Cuba, he worked alongside his father and five brothers at the Quintana Brothers Café and Bar in Havana, Cuba until he graduated from the University of Havana in 1952 as a Sugar Chemist. Recognizing that his beloved Cuba had fallen under a communist dictatorship he and his young family fled Cuba in 1961 and settled in south Louisiana where he would work in the sugar industry and as Chief Chemist for Thionville Laboratory in New Orleans, LA. His greatest joy was in sharing the abundance of love he had for his family and many friends both in St. Petersburg and New Orleans. He was a lifelong Catholic and a member of St. Raphael Catholic Church. A service will be held at St. Raphael Catholic Church, 1376 Snell Isle Blvd. NE, St. Petersburg on Friday, June 22, 2012, at 11:00 am. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made in his name to the Alzheimer's Association Florida Gulf Coast Chapter or the Bon Secours Maria Manor Nursing Care Center. Visit the family's personalized online Guestbook at www.AndersonMcQueen.com