Vicente Castellanos

Vicente Castellanos, 74, died peacefully on May 22 with family by his side. He had lived with Parkinson's disease for more than a dozen years. A first-generation Mexican-American, Vicente was born in Saginaw, the second of ten children. His parents instilled in him the value of education, which would be a driving force throughout his life. After serving his country in the U.S. Air Force, Vicente followed in his father's footsteps and found employment at General Motors. While working full-time and raising a young family, Vicente earned a Bachelor of Science degree from Saginaw Valley State University and, later, a master's from Central Michigan University. He became an activist and educator and coached his kids in baseball, softball and soccer, earning "Coach of the Year" in the latter. Vicente participated in numerous organizations over the decades. He helped establish the Hispanic American Community Endowed Scholarship at SVSU and was involved in the Possible Dream program at Delta College. He was a proud board member of the CAN (Child Abuse and Neglect) Council and of Delta's Somos Hispanos. He also served on the SVSU Board of Fellows and the Commission on Aging at both the regional and state level. A voracious consumer of news, Vicente loved Michigan sports teams, stimulating conversation and healthy debate. He also loved food, healthy or otherwise. He was a champion of underdogs and an eternal optimist, which explains his support of the Detroit Lions. Vicente -- a city boy born and bred -- found great pleasure tending to the horse farm he and his wife Karla purchased later in life. He learned to ride, even completing multiple iterations of the Shore-to-Shore, a seventeen-day horseback adventure covering 220 miles. One of his most satisfying achievements in recent years was finishing the route in 2009, after Parkinson's had greatly inhibited his ability to walk and had made balance difficult. In addition to Karla (nee Kraphol), to whom he was married for 47 years, he's survived by his son Vince (Paige Fitzgerald), daughter Camila (Etienne Capgras) and beloved granddaughters Aitana, Olivia and Chloe. He also is survived by three brothers, four sisters and many nieces and nephews. He was predeceased by his parents and two brothers. The family appreciates all who played a role in Vicente's life, especially those who helped make him more comfortable as his Parkinson's advanced. Thanks to the Saginaw VA Medical Center and the Covenant Visiting Nurse Association's hospice care, particularly Deb and Tawania, who became part of the family. Funeral liturgy will take place at 11:00 a.m. Tuesday, May 30, 2017 at St. Agnes Catholic Church, 300 Johnson St., Freeland, Michigan. Rev. Robert DeLand will officiate with burial in Pinegrove Cemetery in Freeland under the auspices of U. S. Airforce. Friends may visit with the family from 4:00 8:00 p.m. Monday at the W. L. Case and Company Funeral Chapel, 4480 Mackinaw Rd. Saginaw. They may then call at the church on Tuesday from 10:00 a.m. until the time of funeral liturgy. For those who wish, donations may be made to the Hispanic American Community Endowed Scholarship at Saginaw Valley State University.

Funeral Home:
W. L. Case and Company Mackinaw Funeral Chapel
4480 Mackinaw Road
Saginaw, MI
US 48603