David August Camello

David Camello promised his mother that he would sing "Ave Maria" at her funeral service when she passed away. On that occasion, he was nervous and uncertain about whether he would be able to, but resolved to do so and sang the piece beautifully. Through his voice and through his actions, David proved his loyalty and dedication as a devoted and loving son, husband, father, and grandfather.

David August Camello I was born on September 21, 1928, in Oakland, California. He was the seventh of nine children born to the late Joseph and Faustina Camello, Portuguese immigrants who came to America in 1912.

David grew up in a predominantly Portuguese neighborhood of Oakland called Jingle Town. (It was known as Jingle Town because the immigrant population was paid well for their work in area canneries and mills. Workers were said to jingle the coins in their pockets as they walked home on payday.) David spoke Portuguese in his home and his life was greatly influenced by the traditional upbringing he received from his parents.

David was especially close to his sisters growing up because they were closer to his age than his older brothers. He fondly remembered dancing and singing with them. He was also especially close to his younger brother, Joseph. At one time, David built a shed in his backyard to use for exercising with weights, and it was Joseph's job to count his lifts. Togetherness was important to the Camello family and they usually gathered together every Sunday at his parent's home on 23rd Avenue for dinner and a game or two of street football.

David began working at a young age. He got a job at a grocery store near his home when he was nine years old. He graduated from St. Elizabeth's High School in 1946 where he performed in musicals and plays.

Religion was a way of life for David growing up. He lived just around the corner from Mary Help of Christians Church where he and his brothers were all altar boys. He was also involved in most church gatherings and sang in the choir. David admired the church's priests and nuns because of their good ways. He was also influenced by his deeply religious mother, who he regarded as a saint.

It was while spending time at Mary Help of Christians Church that David gained his musical skills. There, he taught himself to read sheet music and to play the organ. He spent hours in the church practicing and improving on his performances.

At 17, David sang in a talent contest that was being judged by the Andrews Sisters at the Orpheum Theater in Oakland. His performance was awarded second prize. In the days that followed, he wouldn’t allow anyone to touch the bow tie he had worn in the contest because the Andrews Sisters had touched it.

Upon graduation from high school, David went to work for the Fruitvale branch of the Bank of America. He stayed with the bank for several years until he left to serve in the military.

From 1950 to 1954, David served in the U.S. Navy. The Korean War was being fought across the Pacific and he was stationed in San Diego, California. His time in the service was an exceptionally difficult time because of his distance from his family. David was devastated because he dearly missed his parents, sisters, and brothers. To better communicate with his parents, he taught himself how to write in Portuguese. With his newfound skill, he wrote many poems and letters to his family, expressing how much he loved them.

While in the Service, David continued to work in a bank in San Diego on Saturdays because, at the time, servicemen were allowed to have other jobs on weekends. During his time in the Navy, he also met one of his closest friends over the years, Bob Clawson. Bob and David remained friends long after their discharge. They were married a week apart and were attendants in each other's weddings and, along with their wives, became godparents for one of each other's children. Bob predeceased David in 1992 but his wife Bridget remained a family friend.

After leaving the Service in 1954, David returned to Oakland and went to work for Bank of America at the 39th and McArthur branch as a loan teller. It was at this time that he met Mary Jo Ruggieri, a fellow employee who would later become his wife. When the bank organized a dance, David invited Mary Jo and they hit it off. Mary Jo was impressed by his listening ear and more settled, spiritual outlook on life. (Her mother and father also loved him because he was Catholic.)

David and Mary Jo were married on June 12, 1955. Three priests celebrated High Mass in Latin at Mary Help of Christians Church with a full choir. About 500 people attended the wedding. David insisted upon traditional wedding plans. It was an all white wedding and the bridesmaids all wore full-length dresses, despite the popularity of the ballerina length style. The ushers wore tails and they all accused David of making them look like monkeys. The family often joked about their wedding limousines, which looked like hearses because they were a gift from a local mortician who was a friend of the family. Afterward, Mary Jo's parents hosted a champagne brunch for the immediate family at their new home in Castro Valley, California. The brunch was followed with a party at Hill and Valley Country Club in Castro Valley where David and Mary Jo received 500 guests. A few days before the wedding, David gave his new wife a watch inscribed with the words, "My Love, My Life."

The newlyweds initially lived in an apartment in San Leandro, California, but after their first child was born in 1956 they moved in for a time with Mary Jo’s parents in Castro Valley. They then moved to Hayward for a period, and eventually back to San Leandro. They wanted to buy their own home and struggled over the next few years to meet the requirements to qualify for a loan. In 1963, they were finally able to move into their longtime home in Fremont, California.

David's family was his life. He placed the utmost importance on his wife and seven children. He believed that family members had a duty to one another. He worked hard to ensure that his family was well provided for and happy. He planned family vacations during the summer and went to every sporting event that his children participated in. Every night after the children were tucked into bed, David would sit at the piano, pull out his sheet music and sing them off to sleep. He sang "My Way," "Your Cheating Heart," and, most of all, "Somewhere over the Rainbow." (David was a big Judy Garland fan.)

David went to great lengths to impress upon his family traditional values. He wanted them to be kind and respectful to others and well mannered and considerate. He told them that they should be forgiving and they would be treated the way they treat others. These values he shared can be seen in the way his children treat their spouses and families.

David also shared his deep faith in God with his family. He wanted them all to remain close to the church and to trust in God. He said that, without faith, you would not find happiness. He often awoke before dawn to attend an early Mass before work and often brought his children along. Every Sunday the entire family was expected to attend Mass. David attended services for 38 years at Holy Spirit Church in Fremont.

David also enjoyed sharing his Portuguese heritage with his children, especially through cuisine. He often prepared fihoz, a Portuguese delicacy kind of like a doughnut. The fihoz was served on the Tuesday before Ash Wednesday, or Spy Tuesday. They were part of a feast before the traditional Lenten period of fasting. David would spend the entire day frying and bagging the fihoz and would deliver it to his children's homes.

He also served veena dauge, a marinated pork dish, every Christmas Eve after midnight. (Traditionally, Catholics were supposed to fast and were not allowed to eat meat until after midnight.)

He also prepared Portuguese sweet bread, following an original recipe from his godmother, condensed for lesser quantities by his late sister, Gloria. David prided himself on his skill in kneading the bread so it would rise beautifully overnight. When he no longer had the strength to knead the bread, he taught his daughter, Davicca, how to prepare it. Eventually, his sons and daughters-in-law learned to bake their own sweet bread as well. It then became something of a family competition with the entire family bragging about who had baked the best bread. They would blindfold each other to guess who made the tastiest bread but no one ever received a prize. Most agreed that each was as wonderful as the next.

Mary Jo also learned to prepare David's favorite dish, sopa de carna, and every time she cooked it was a festive occasion. (The dish was traditionally served at festivals and feasts.) Portuguese caterers served the dish to more than 100 people at David's 70th birthday party, and you couldn't wipe the smile off of his face.

David loved giving gifts to his children. When each child turned 18, they received a saint medal. At 19, each got a leather jacket. At 20, David would go to McConnell's Jewelers in Walnut Creek, California, and buy them a gold ring with a black onyx and a diamond. (His daughter got the same ring with her birthstone.)

While David was in the Navy, he got a tattoo of two hearts pierced by a dagger with his name. When his third son, Michael, turned 18, he asked his father if he could copy it. David agreed and took him to Reno to get the tattoo. This started a whole new tradition. In the years that followed, each son also got the same tattoo.

David worked at Bank of America for 15 years. Upon leaving Bank of America, he was recruited by Central Valley National Bank in Walnut Creek. He initially worked as an operations officer and, after many years of loyalty and dedication, he was made vice-president in charge of security. He worked many 16-hour days over the next 27 years. He was responsible for implementing the bank's ATM system and wrote their standard practice manual. He also traveled from north to south California implementing the bank's on-line system within its branches. In all, David spent 42 years in banking before a takeover of Central Bank brought his unexpected retirement in 1991.

After he left the bank, David had a lot of time to spend with his grandchildren. "Papa," as he was known to them, loved them dearly and enjoyed spending time taking care of them.

David loved baking cookies. He would often hide a stash of them for when his grandchildren came over. David usually started baking cookies for Christmas in October.

David also enjoyed spending time gardening in his backyard. He loved roses but always grew them from cuttings and usually wouldn't go to a nursery. He also spent a great deal of time in a lounge chair in the arbor that his sons built for him. "Papa's Garden" was one of his favorite places in the world.

David truly had a gift for music. He loved all types of music, from classical to popular, and was gifted with an amazing voice that was charged with emotion and power. David was a humble person and really didn't have a desire to use his talent to become famous. He shared his music with his family, singing at weddings, parties, and other special occasions. Every year on Christmas Eve, he would gather his children and grandchildren around the piano and lead them in carols. To bring Santa Claus, the children would have to sing "Jingle Bells" at the top of their lungs. One of his most memorable and beautiful moments was when he surprised his oldest son David on the occasion of his wedding by singing a duet of "Ave Maria" with one of his other sons, Chris. David was originally to sing the song solo but decided to share it with Chris as a gift to his brother.

Most powerful of all was the way he sang his love of God. When he sang in church, his voice would go right through people. He was the music lector and director of the teen choir at Holy Spirit Church. He also served as adult choir director at St. Felicitas in San Leandro and at Mary Help of Christians Church over the years.

In his later years, David enjoyed vacationing at Lake Tahoe and spending time with his brother, Joseph, who lived there. The family would gather and they would spend hours swimming, playing pinochle, going to the beach, and simply enjoying the beautiful scenery. David liked playing the slot machines in the nearby casinos. They would spend hours singing and dancing. (David would often sing duets with Joseph's wife, Ethel.)

Over the last few years of his life, David was very ill. He was a brittle diabetic, which caused bad circulation and blockage in most of his arteries. This artery problem caused several heart attacks leading to a quadruple bypass operation in 1996. A series of small strokes followed the operation, causing severe dementia. In 1998, his kidneys failed and he had to receive dialysis treatment three times each week. His family came together during the time of his greatest illness and they were able to avoid placing him in a convalescent home. Mary Jo, his children, and their wives took turns sitting with him during his dialysis treatments. They appreciated this quality time with David.

Throughout his illness, David amazed medical staffs with his strength of will and determination. One doctor called him "the most courageous and sweetest man I have ever met." Another doctor from Stanford who had helped save David from a massive stroke came in one day unofficially and announced that he wanted to shake the hand of one of the bravest and most respected men he had ever met, which made David smile from ear to ear.

David celebrated his 70th birthday in 1998 surrounded by the many things he loved: his family, music, and his friends. His birthday also featured a surprise appearance by Faye West, the "larger sister" of Mae West. The obese impersonator dressed in feathers and floozy apparel and belted out David's favorite songs. She kissed him, leaving lipstick marks all over his face, and commented that she would be taking Judy Garland's place in his heart. It was a memorable occasion filled with irrepressible laughter.

David and Mary Jo celebrated their 45th wedding anniversary on June 12, 2000. Two days later, David was admitted to the hospital. He passed away surrounded by his family on June 22, 2000.

In addition to his wife, David leaves behind his seven children, David Allen Camello and his wife Susan, Davicca Ann (Camello) Hutchins, Joseph Ralph Camello and his wife Rene, Michael Anthony Camello and his wife Ann, Christopher John Camello, James Thomas Camello, and Donald Matthew Camello and his wife Lisa Marie; his 15 grandchildren, David August Camello II, Daniel Allen Camello, Julianne Marie Camello, Caitlin Marie Camello, Kevin Jay Hutchins, Stephen Michael Hutchins, Joseph Michael Camello, Anthony David Camello, Mary Lorraine Camello, Jacqueline Suzanne Camello, Jeanae Lee Camello, Michelle Ann Camello, Jamie Marie Camello, Jonathan David Camello, and Donald Matthew Camello Jr.; his mother-in-law, Mary Ruggieri of Fremont; his sisters, Mary Andrada and Josephine Bliss; his brothers, Manuel Camello and Joseph Camello; and many nieces and nephews.

He was predeceased by three sisters, Ann Silverfoot, Gloria Berndt, and Delores Suryan, and a brother, Tony Camello.