Manuel Gonzalez V

Manuel Gonzalez V, 93, of Paramus, New Jersey, passed away on Sunday, May 23, 2021.  Born in Pinar del Rio, Cuba, Manuel emigrated to the United States in 1968 and built a life for himself and his family as political exiles in the United States. After landing in Florida, the family continued on to settle in New Jersey.

Manuel arrived from Cuba with a working knowledge of English, which he learned working  as the liaison for the mining operation in Cuba with an American company.  Putting his knowledge of English to use, Manuel enrolled in classes at Bergen Community College and obtained his engineer’s license. This led to his career with PSE&G, where he worked until his retirement. He continued to embrace both cultures and ran a business with his wife, Lilia, for thirty-seven years. Together they owned and operated a gift shop on Bergenline Avenue in West New York, the heart of the Cuban neighborhood in North Jersey. He raised his two children to be bilingual and appreciative of everything the United States had to offer.

He is survived by his daughter Lily Diaz together with his son Manuel Gonzalez VI and wife Doreen; his grandchildren Cecilia Diaz, Manuel Gonzalez VII and wife Brittany Rivera-Gonzalez, Amanda Gaeta and husband Joseph Gaeta, Andres Diaz, and Mia Gonzalez as well as his great grandson Lucas Gaeta.

Manuel was predeceased by his loving wife Lilia in 2014, whom he was married to for fifty-seven years.

All services for Manuel are private.  Arrangements by the Vander Plaat Funeral Home,  www.vpfh.com, 257 Godwin Ave. Wyckoff, NJ. 

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