Dr. Jose Enrique Puente Sr.

PUENTE Dr. Jose Enrique Puente, Sr., PhD., age 83, passed away on Tuesday, June 28, 2011 in Miami, Florida. Beloved husband of 57 years to Dr. Raquel Saludes Puente, PhD. Survived by 5 children and their spouses: Dr. Maria P. Mitchell, PhD. (Lloyd), Dr. Joseph (Dr. Dawn), Dr. Michael (Karen), Dr. G. Richard (Wendy) and Albert (Sonia). Also survived by 14 grandchildren as well as numerous nieces and nephews. Dr. Puente was born in Havana, Cuba, on January 26, 1928. He graduated from Belen Jesuit High School and the University of Havana from which he received his Juris Doctorate in 1961. He was a practicing attorney in Cuba until arriving in the United States in 1961. Having received a Doctorate of Spanish Studies from Louisiana State University in 1968, he was a professor of Spanish studies at the Virginia Military Institute and at the University of Southwestern Louisiana for many years prior to relocating to Miami, Florida. After retirement, he remained active publishing several books of literature and poetry as well as working as a journalist for several newspapers. He was also a guest lecturer at numerous universities throughout the United States, including Notre Dame, Princeton and others. A funeral mass will be said at the Church of the Little Flower on Saturday, July 2, 2011, in Coral Gables, Florida at 1:00 P.M.