John P. Tetzeli Sr.

1932 - 2025

We are sad to announce the passing of John Paul Tetzeli, Sr., on September 23, 2025, in Miami, Florida. He was a beloved son, brother, father, and grandfather, and will be missed by all.

John had quite the life; to understand and fully appreciate it, knowing its origins is vital. He was born on June 22, 1932, in Chomutov, Bohemia, Czechia (it was Czechoslovakia then), where his mother, Sophinka Deym ze Stříteže, and his father, Ludvik (Lutz), Baron Tetzeli de Rosador, gave him the name Jan Pavel. He was the second son, after Frederick. The first years of their lives were spent in western Bohemia, where their father operated banks.

Both the Deym and Tetzeli families have a storied history. The beauty and fascinating lives of both families are inspiring.

The Deyms are one of the oldest families in Czech nobility, and were and are both artists and patrons of the arts, and commissioned music from both Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and Ludvig van Beethoven. An ancestor, Josephine Deym, was tutored in piano by Beethoven and is believed to be his likely Immortal Beloved. The Deym family includes statesmen who represented the Kingdom of Bohemia before the Hapsburg Imperial Court in Vienna. The Deyms pressed the Habsburg monarchy for greater autonomy for Bohemia. Deyms also advocated for and supported the nascent Czechoslovakia, donating a palais in the heart of Praha, Prague, as part of land reforms too, for the first government of Czechoslovakia to use as headquarters after World War I.

The Tetzelis -- originally 'Tetzel', an Austrian surname; the 'i' was added per Hungarian custom at the time -- were active in the Austro-Hungarian Empire's political life and served in the military. They also settled in Bohemia and other parts of the Empire. They have long had a passion for brewing the famous Pilsner beer -- around the world -- and slivovitz! In Czechia, they are actively preserving Czech cultural heritage and art with their own museum dedicated to it.

From these roots, John, throughout his life, and everywhere he lived, remained first and foremost Czech in his heart. He greatly missed his original homeland. The music that served as the theme to his life would be Má vlast, by Bedřich Smetana, in particular the gorgeous tone painting, Vltava. His life did flow like the great river...

In 1938, John's family escaped Bohemia and reached safety in Belgium, where John's father took a position in the sugar importation business with Paul Kronacker, his brother-in-law, who was married to Blanka Deym ze Stříteže. The years spent in Belgium were relatively quiet for the family, where John and his brother, Frederick, enjoyed cross-country skiing as a diversion.

Then in May 1940 the winds of war were very near Belgium. John's father was well-prepared, having been equipped with special maps and gear, with special thanks to Mr. Kronacker, who had been a war hero in what was then known as The Great War, World War I. The small convoy headed south, and included John's Uncle Ladis (Ladislaw, Prince Radziwiłł), and a Swedish friend of the family driving a green Mercury coupe she had raced in the Monaco Grand Prix. Early along the way, not far into France, John saw soldiers, including British ones with their distinctive doughboy helmets, who were among those in the massive evacuation from Dunkirk from May 26 to June 4, 1940.

The group had to navigate back roads to avoid getting stuck in the enormous traffic jams on main southbound escape routes. At one point, the group suddenly had to stop in a long line of vehicles. John's father exited his car and walked ahead to see why traffic was not moving. He returned soon after, and traffic proceeded.

Years later, John learned that a fifth columnist, disguised as a priest, had been standing in the roadway, blocking traffic headed south, falsely warning people that they were placing themselves in greater danger by trying to escape. The opposite, of course, was true: long lines of traffic drew strafing runs from fighter planes, including when fifth columnists were deliberately holding up traffic. John's father, Lutz, recognized the danger -- many cars had mattresses and other objects on their roofs because of strafing -- and was of course armed for the perilous journey. Lutz retrieved his sidearm from the glove box and heroically dispatched the fifth columnist, then safely placed the sidearm back in the glove box, so that everyone could advance and escape, saving countless lives.

The group made it safely to Bordeaux, where the French government re-established itself on June 10, 1940, declaring Paris to be an open city. John and his family stayed on a rural property on the outskirts of Bordeaux, where they rented a home from a kind family. John's father made forays into the now overcrowded Bordeaux, which was teeming with fellow refugees from all walks of life and places.

The objective of so many thousands of people was to at least exit France and so reach safety. But the heads of both Spain and Portugal had severely hindered or forbidden the granting of visas to those trying to escape France, in particular vis-a-vis their consulates in Bordeaux.

Two heroic diplomats in Bordeaux, however, from Spain and Portugal, followed their conscience and humanitarianism and saved thousands upon thousands of people, without discrimination. One diplomat acting alone could not have saved the refugees, including John's family, without the other diplomat, particularly in regards to visas issued by the Portuguese diplomat. Without Spanish entry or transit visas, the refugees would not have been able to escape; those who obtained visas to enter Portugal also could not have escaped, without the Spanish transit visas.

These Spanish visas were issued by the Spanish diplomat in charge of the Bordeaux consulate: Eduardo Propper de Callejón, declared Righteous Among the Nations by Yad Vashem. John learned of the indispensable existence and heroism of the Spanish diplomat from John's son, Andrew, when he discovered it only after returning from a tour of homage to the Portuguese diplomat.

The heroism of Eduardo Propper de Callejón is the true untold story. John's eternal wish is to especially thank the Spanish diplomat, whose heroism has all too often been left out of accounts and articles lauding the Portuguese diplomat alone, when in fact his heroism alone -- without the Spanish diplomat's -- could not have saved these refugees' lives.

The Portuguese visa entries list John's family being granted visas with and amidst members of the Rothschild family, including Henri, Baron Rothschild. One can picture John's father, the dapper, fellow banker and baron, engaging with the Rothschilds, as they obtained their visas to freedom.

The Portuguese diplomat, Aristides de Sousa Mendes, is also Righteous Among the Nations. Both diplomats, Propper de Callejón and Sousa Mendes, must be given and deserve equal credit and honor. Only the valiant actions of both allowed escape for the vast majority of those who obtained these humanist- and humanitarian-inspired disobedient visas.

This theme of upstanders, and their necessity when challenges arise to do the right thing, is very important. The same truth applies to the humanitarian imperative to welcome refugees and to oppose discrimination or bigotry.

So, thanks to the defiantly-issued, heroic visas issued by both diplomats, John's family made it to Portugal, and then Spain, where they boarded a ship bound for Havana, Cuba. Cuba was their destination because John's father now had experience and contacts in the sugar industry. It was something totally new for them. Sophinka, when told that Cuba had mountains, exclaimed, "Then I shall bring my skis!"

Their adopted homeland welcomed them with open arms. John's father represented the Czech government in exile in Cuba, and he helped hunt U-boats at night off the coast of Cuba.

John and his father developed a love for the ocean, and John's father had a boat custom-made, and enjoyed deep-sea fishing, taking his family along with him. John's father even won the 1953 Hemingway International Fishing Tournament, and the family met with Ernest Hemingway, who won the Nobel Prize in Literature that year. The family had become, in the expression of locals, 'aplatanado', in the sense they had become part of Cuba and adapted to its customs.

Upon graduating from the University of Havana law school, John became an abogado de oficio, an honor reserved for the best new lawyers, akin to being a public defender. At about that time, the Cuban Revolution had removed Fulgencio Batista as ruler of Cuba. Before military tribunals created by Ernesto "Che" Guevara, John had to defend people accused of being counter-revolutionary. After farce trials, with the verdict pre-decided, the kangaroo courts would immediately have the accused executed by firing squad just outside the building.

By then, John had married Helena Hidalgo de Caviedes. Their first child, Helena, was on the way. Although they would have stayed otherwise, as they loved Cuba, they knew could no longer continue living there. Helena is the daughter of the famous Spanish artist, Hipólito Hidalgo de Caviedes, who had won the prestigious Carnegie International award of 1935. Her family had found refuge in Cuba, with Helena, from Spain, during the Spanish Civil War.

In 1961, John and his now-growing family, which now also included a new child, John Tetzeli, Jr., made it to freedom in the United States, their new home in exile. John began working at banks in New York City, a career which spanned decades. From there, the family grew more, to include daughter Monica and son Andrew.

The family lived in different parts of the United States, and eventually in Miami, Florida, where John ultimately passed away. John had a wry, delightful sense of humor, with which he gracefully navigated life and its changes. His resilience is borne out by the lives of his children and grandchildren. Those who knew John were blessed and many recount how John helped them at different parts of their lives.

John loved playing tennis, and his children tried but could not keep up with his serves and volleys! John adored nature, and going on picnics and excursions with his family and friends. John had a keen appreciation of history and current events, and their interplay. People expressed amazement at his knowledge and understanding and ability to cite the precise years of historical events that occurred over the centuries, and to relate them to the present day.

Much like Sophinka, his warm, engaging mother, John also relished being the family historian. He applied that talent to connecting members of the extended family, who lived all over Europe and elsewhere. John's children will always treasure these immensely meaningful experiences. John also shared the panache and savoir faire of his father, Lutz, as well as the passion for banking.

John is survived by his wife of so many years, Helena; their four children, Helena, John Jr., Monica, and Andrew; and three grandchildren, Audrey, Gabriel, and Sophia. John's legacy of humanity and kindness lives on as well. The lives of those who met and knew John are forever enriched.

May John's memory be a blessing. Requiescat in Pace.

Please see https://everloved.com/memorial/john-tetzeli-sr/.