BIOGRAPHY

Fernandez was born Estela Orue in Havana, Cuba, on 22 April 1912. At the age of 20, she married Alvaro Fernandez, a Spaniard, and soon after moved with him to Spain, where she became known as “La Bella Cubana.” When the Spanish Civil War broke out in 1936, the couple spent 18 months taking refuge in a bomb shelter, where their first son, Alvaro Jr., was born. Despite living in Spain for 15 years, Estela never fully integrated into Spanish culture and longed to return to Cuba. After the birth of their next two children, José and Estela Maria, she finally persuaded Alvaro to return to Cuba in 1947.

After returning to Cuba, her husband became a successful retail shoe store owner, allowing the family to enjoy an upper-middle-class lifestyle. In her free time, she loved gardening, going to the beach, dancing, reading historical fiction, and spending time with her family. However, in 1953, the Cuban Revolution upended their lives. The family’s businesses, wealth, and belongings were taken from them. Their son, José, joined the CIA’s covert guerrilla operation aimed at overthrowing Fidel Castro’s regime. When the Bay of Pigs invasion failed, José was captured by Castro’s forces, imprisoned, and tortured in a concentration camp.

In 1966, their children, Maria and Alvaro Jr., sought asylum in the United States, arriving as political refugees. Meanwhile, Estela and her husband stayed behind in Cuba to fight for José’s release. Because José was born in Spain, the Spanish government intervened and secured his release in 1967, two years after his imprisonment. After his release, José, along with his wife and children, settled in Spain until 1968, when Estela, Alvaro, and José’s family were finally able to reunite with the rest of the family in Los Angeles. In 1974, six years after their move to the U.S., Estela’s husband passed away from a heart attack.

In her late 90s, Estela began to suffer from dementia. In early May 2020, she tested positive for COVID-19 and was placed in quarantine. Five days later, she developed mild symptoms, including a fever, cough, and lethargy. She made a full recovery after 14 days.

Estela Maria Fernandez passed away in Huntington Beach, California, USA, on 3 June 2023, at the age of 111 years, 42 days.

RECOGNITION

Her age has not been validated.

ATTRIBUTION

* “Bittersweet family reunion: Quarantined, nursing home resident marks her 108th birthday” – Orange County Register, 26 April 2020

* “108 is the new 88” – hollyvanderdonck.com, 10 June 2020

* “Estela Maria Fernandez of Huntington Beach, California” – All Souls Mortuary

GALLERY