Alexander Monterrosa

Alexander Monterrosa, 79, died peacefully at his Anchorage home on July 22, 2025, in the caring presence of Kathleen, his beloved wife of 57 years, devoted brother Mario, son Antonio, daughter-in-law Willow, and grandchildren Cinnamon, Sabrina, and Joaquin. St. Patrick's parish in Anchorage will host an 11 a.m. visitation on Friday, August 8, 2025, followed by a noon Mass that may be livestreamed at st.patsak.org. A San Francisco memorial will be held the afternoon of Sunday, October 5, 2025 at a site to be disclosed by contacting the family at janssenfuneralhomes.com Obituaries.

Alex spent his San Francisco childhood terrorizing Richmond District neighbors with Mario, climbing Golden Gate Park trees to drop pinecones on cars, jumping roof-to-roof to run laps over every house on their block, digging for lead on the Presidio shooting range during live firing exercises, blasting neighbors' windows with their marble cannon, and lassoing kids riding by on bicycles. Alex loved shoplifting candy, but after being nearly caught at age 11, Alex's delinquency ended. He returned in his 20s to apologize to the store owner and pay for what he had stolen.

Rosa and José, Alex's firm but loving immigrant parents from El Salvador, placed a premium on education. Alex spoke no English in kindergarten and his primary school teachers publicly ridiculed his writing, but Alex persisted, and as an eighth grader won San Francisco's citywide writing contest with his "Why I Love America" essay. Denied admission into St. Ignatius High, Rosa appealed to St. Ignatius' Father Reed, a kind champion of underdogs, who allowed Alex into the prep school whose Jesuit instructors Alex forever credited for instilling an unwavering ethical, spiritual, and academic backbone that would serve him all his life.

Alex spent nine years attending USF while wooing Kathy and working nights as a psychiatric ward technician, then moved to Alaska in 1975 to begin his 21 year career as an elementary school teacher. Despite his rigorous academic expectations, every student at Baxter knew that Mr. Monterrosa was The Funny Teacher. Alex staunchly advocated Cooperative Learning, believing that teachers needed to step aside when appropriate to allow students to help teach each other and mediate their conflicts themselves, hence his "Sink or Swim Together" mantra. As a result, kids who entered second grade with behavioral problems or learning deficits most often completed second grade with empathy, knowledge, and friends. Alex later served as a counselor at Mountain View, then finished his career at Chugiak as the Anchorage School District's first Spanish Immersion kindergarten teacher. His encore jobs included volunteer ushering at the Alaska Performing Arts Center, and jovially entertaining cruise ship tourists as an Alaska Railroad guide.

Quick to remind you that he lacked world-class speed, Alex nevertheless amassed jaw-dropping statistics over a 30 year running career: 71,000+ miles (nearly three times around the world!), including a 13+ year streak of never missing a day. Alex was chosen to represent El Salvador as a marathoner at the 1976 Montreal Olympic games. He shifted from running to biking at age 53, and spent the next 25 years grinding his $200 bike up terrible hills that would paralyze men half his age.

Alex shared the deepest, most loving relationship with the Lord, and spent hours each day praying for others, always while running or biking. If you knew Alex, there is a 100% chance that he prayed for you. Likewise, every moment spent with Kathy was Alex's most joyous gift. Without fail, Alex kissed Kathy daily, declaring how much he loved her, and how blessed he felt to be loved by her.

The most cherished gift you could give Kathy would be to please visit janssenfuneralhomes.com Obituaries to "Share a Memory" and post a short video. Alex was the biggest cheerleader of every person he met, and his family would love to see your face and hear your stories.