Vivian Lucila Fernandez's Obituary
Vivian Lucila Fernandez
October 31st, 1950, to August 13th, 2024
Beloved mother, sister, widow, retired educator, and cancer fighter.
On Tuesday, August 13th, 2024, at 5:29pm, Vivian Lucila Fernandez, resident of Coral Gables, Florida, 73 years of age, passed away at University of Miami Tower Hospital, in Miami, Florida due to complications from ovarian cancer. Vivian was married to Dr. Eduardo Pablo Fernandez-Pupo, who preceded her in death. She is survived by their two sons, Daniel Eduardo Fernandez (45) and Edward Paul Fernandez (30). Vivian was born in Havana, Cuba on October 31st, 1950, to Pedro Rodriguez and Ofelia Llarena y Lasaga, who both preceded her in death. She was the oldest of three sisters, including Tere Ramirez and Arlene Vargas, who both survive her. In December 1961, at 11 years old, she immigrated from Cuba to Miami, Florida along with her mother Ofelia, sister Tere, and other extended family members to escape the oppressive communist regime. As the daughter of a civil engineer and member of a hard-working middle-class family, she demonstrated a passion for excellence in academics and a strong aptitude for mathematics. She graduated with honors from Miami Senior High in June 1968, as a member of the National Honor Society. After continuing her studies at Miami Dade College for two years, she transferred to the University of Florida in Gainesville, Florida, where she completed her bachelor’s in science in 1972, and master’s in education in 1973. In September 1974, she married Dr. Eduardo Pablo Fernandez-Pupo, following a romance that began with a chance meeting at the airport in Madrid, Spain and sharing a flight to Miami. After living together in Zaragoza, Spain for two years while he completed his medical studies, they moved back to Miami, Florida in August 1976 to start a family together and build their careers, eventually moving to Coral Gables, Florida. After 27 years of marriage, she was widowed in September 2002 when her husband Eduardo passed away, following a nearly 10-year battle with cancer. She never remarried, instead focusing her energy on her children, family, career, and other pursuits. Vivian was a middle school and high school mathematics teacher for Miami-Dade County Public Schools for most of her career. She began her teaching career at West Miami Middle School in 1976. From there, she taught primarily Algebra I, Geometry, and Algebra II at Miami Palmetto Senior High School. During her time as a math teacher, she received several teaching awards and accolades, including Teacher of the Year in 1985. After a long and accomplished teaching career, impacting the lives of thousands of teenagers, she became a Math Coach at Miami Northwestern Senior High School so she could also pass along her knowledge and experience to the next generation of teachers. In addition to academics and teaching, Vivian always had other passionate interests. In the later stages of her career and upon her retirement after 34 years as an educator in July 2010, she travelled throughout Europe, South America, and North America; and pursued her interests in real estate, home improvement, and design. She also enjoyed living an active lifestyle, including exercise classes and socializing with friends at the Biltmore Hotel in Coral Gables, Florida. In July 2018, she was diagnosed with advanced stage ovarian cancer. Despite the difficult news, she attacked her treatment aggressively and without hesitation, allowing her to fully beat back the disease four times with the help of her medical team and support of her family. Even in the face of setbacks and difficult odds, she continued to fight and show an unrelenting resolve at every step for over six years. She will be greatly missed by her two sons, who were both always by her side throughout her journey, as she now finds peace. Services will be held in her honor and to celebrate her life on Saturday, September 21st, 2024. Mass will be held at St. Raymond of Peñafort Catholic Church (3475 SW 17th St, Miami, FL 33145) at 10:00am, followed by burial at Graceland Memorial Park North (4420 SW 8th St, Miami, FL 33134) at approximately 12:00pm, and then a reception for her family and close friends that afternoon with details to follow. In lieu of flowers, the family kindly requests a donation be made in her honor to the Ovarian Cancer Research Alliance or the American Cancer Society.
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