Today, February 7, 2020, is my late uncle Belarmino Diaz’s 101st birthday. (02/07/1919-06/16/2005). He was born in 1919 in Ray, Arizona if I’m not mistaken (could’ve been somewhere in the Verde Valley), and was closest in age to my dad, who was born the following year in Jerome, Az.

I remember my uncle well, although I never spent a lot of time around him, at least not as much as my other uncles. He was probably the quietest of all the siblings in my dad’s family. He was a World War II veteran and served in the US Army. He and his wife Eva, whom he married in 1944, settled in Phoenix and lived there the rest of their lives.

They had three children, Belarmino Jr., James, and Helen. At the time of my aunt’s death in 2003, they also had 7 grandchildren and 5 great grandchildren.

The only times I ever saw Tio Mino and his family were when we had big family gatherings in Superior, Oracle or Tucson. The above photo was taken in 2007 at one such gathering, our second family reunion. Below is a photo of another such event, back in the early 60s in Superior. Uncle Mino is seated on the far right.

My cousin Helen Molina, tio Mino’s daughter, wrote a beautiful tribute to her dad and mom in the book “Diaz Family, Spain to America: A Story of An American Family”. (It’s available for sale at lulu.com). She shares a lot of details about my tio that are quite interesting, including the fact that he was a male nurse in the Army and that he sailed home from Europe on the Queen Mary after the war.

I sure miss my tios and my dad. These family gatherings were some of the happiest times of my childhood. Aunt Helen and Carmen are still with us. The rest have all passed, but their memory lives on! Que viva la Famila Diaz de Supirio, Arizona!