Obituary of Yolanda V. Fernandez

Yolanda Vazquez was born on November 24^th, 1924, in Cuba and passed away January 18, 2021. Her parents, Adolfo and Benedicta Vazquez were Spanish immigrants who lived in a small town where he ran the finances for a sugar plantation and she cooked for the workers.

At an early age, Benedicta realized Yoly was extremely bright. Despite an era when education wasn’t valued for girls, her mother insisted Yoly, like her brother, be sent to a private school in the city to receive a better education. Yoly was an excellent student, eventually earning her PH.D. in education from the University of Havana.

 Yoly met Antonio Fernandez, the love of her life, in Santa Clara when she was only 15 years old.  He was 21 years old and she was surprised when he picked her out from all the girls in the park to walk with her. Their courtship continued until Yoly finished her education and they married on May 24^th, 1947. They lived in Santa Clara and two years later Yoly had their first son, Antonio. Later came Humberto, Jorge, and finally, Yolanda. 

In 1961, after Fidel Castro became dictator of Cuba, Yolanda and Antonio made the difficult decision to send their oldest son to the United States in what later became known as the Peter Pan Flights, when young boys were sent to the U.S. to try to escape the required military service at 14. From Miami, he was sent to live with a foster family in St. Petersburg. The rest of the family, the youngest only five months old, followed in March of 1963.

Antonio and Yolanda never looked back. At age 45 and 39, penniless, with no family in the U.S. for support, and four children, they began to rebuild their lives in St. Petersburg. They didn’t even speak English.

With courage and an amazing work ethic, they forged forward and were able to buy their first home just two years after arriving as refugees.

Yolanda earned her certification to teach Spanish and worked at Shorecrest Preparatory School, then later at Clearwater Central Catholic. She would continue working at CCC for nearly three decades. A talented artist, she taught Art and Spanish at first, but spent most of her career teaching Spanish. Yoly was a dedicated teacher and her enthusiasm to teach culture as well as the language was well-known. She created beautiful artwork for the walls, directed student plays that usually included Spanish dancing, and her students won state awards at Spanish competitions. She founded the first Spanish Honor Society Chapter at CCC. After retiring from CCC, she continued to work as a part-time Spanish teacher into her late 70’s.

At home, Yoly was a devoted mother who encouraged her children to do their very best and always put family first. She will always be remembered for her strength of character, endless energy, and flair for the dramatic.

She was blessed with a long full life of 96 years. Yoly is survived by her sons, Humberto and Jorge, daughter, Yolanda, seven grandchildren and two great-grandchildren.

The care of Mrs. Fernandez and her family has been entrusted to David C. Gross Funeral Home, St. Petersburg, FL.