My mom’s brother Eduardo Rascon was born on February 8, 1926 in Superior, Arizona. He was the second of five children born to Josefa Ortega and Donato Rascon.

At one point, I had a photo of him as an adult. It was taken at my mom’s house and in the photo with him was my aunt Dora. I loaned the photo to my tio Donato, and unfortunately he never gave it back, so the only photos I have to share are ones from his childhood.

Uncle Eddie had his share of troubles. When he was young, he had a few run-ins with the law and was put in jail for having, along with another young guy, stolen someone’s car. He was called up to serve in the military in the mid-40s, although I’m not sure in which branch he served, or even if he actually did serve. The article below is from the December 3, 1948 edition of the Arizona Daily Star. Uncle Eddie’s name is included in the list of young men from Tucson who were called in for a pre-induction physical.

In 1958, Uncle Eddie married Maria Luisa Canez (Mary Lou) when he was 32 and she was 30, and they had two children. A son named Ruben died in infancy and another, Eduardo Jr., is my age and lives in Tucson, if I’m not mistaken, but I haven’t seen him in many years. The family used to live way out in Flowing Wells, and they had a gorgeous antique buffet, that my grandmother held onto for the longest time. It’s funny how one remembers these things…

My tios divorced in 1970 and Uncle Eddie lived alone for a long time in a trailer in South Tucson. He was a gardener for the University of Arizona. I distinctly remember him raking the grounds outside the Social Sciences building while I was in class one year. I was always happy to see him and I made sure to say hello whenever I ran into him on campus. I remember that my mom was very fond of him too.

Uncle Eddie died on July 8, 1997 and is buried at the Holy Hope Cemetery in Tucson.