Carlos Onofre Castells

Carlos Onofre Castells, 89 years old, passed from this life to rejoin his beloved Marijane on August 27, 2025 in Petersburg, Virginia.

Carlos was born on January 12, 1936 in Guayaquil, Ecuador to Sarah Rafaela Castells de Tama and Onofre Camilo Drago Castells. He was the sixth of seven siblings, all of whom shared a close bond with him. At age 19, he immigrated to the United States, where his family settled in Cincinnati, Ohio. Carlos served in the US Army as a professional vocalist, then becoming a naturalized citizen in 1961. He attended university in Ohio for several years and worked at Sears before being recruited to the federal workforce after scoring high marks for his aptitude. As a government civilian with the US Navy, Naval Investigative Service, he rose to lead their nuclear munitions security program, retiring as a GS-15 in 1998.

Carlos met Marijane Stephan, his wife of 63 years, at the Newman Club in Cincinnati, Ohio. She was playing the piano, and they immediately caught each other's attention when he jumped in, singing along to her accompaniment. They married in 1958 and together they had four children: Maria Sarita Castells Elliott (John), Carlos Castells (Sharon Hogan), Margarita Juana Noyes (Michael), and Pepe Manuel Castells (Zsuzsanna). They were a theatrically gifted bunch who were sequentially voted "most talented" in their high school classes. Carlos and Marijane enjoyed playing cards and hosting annual parties, including a Christmas "Sing-a-long" for friends, colleagues, and family that continues through their descendants to the present.

Carlos and Marijane traveled the country together, first on a motorcycle and later in their "camper" RV, hitting every U.S. state, and sending many postcards from major U.S. landmarks. They enjoyed attending the arts, making regular visits to the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington D.C. and the Metropolitan Opera in New York. Their home was never without classical music and the flourishing plants that Carlos carefully tended himself. Carlos was also an avid tennis player for many years, and a witty conversationalist whose lighthearted humor and good nature won him great fondness from acquaintances and family alike.

Carlos was preceded in death by his parents; his wife Marijane; son Pepe; and siblings Maria Rosa, Teresa, Jaime ("Jimmy"), Carmen, Onofre, and Manuel. He is succeeded by three children, 13 adult grandchildren and 16 great grandchildren, all of whom will miss him greatly.

Eulogies will be given beginning at 11am at St. Philip Catholic Church in Falls, Church Virginia on Friday, September 5, 2025, with a funeral Mass at 12 Noon, and interment at Fairfax Memorial Park at 2pm.