Jose Rolando Aid M.D.

José Rolando Tuma-Aid, M.D., 85, of Hartly, DE, passed away suddenly on March 16, 2026, at Bayhealth Medical Center. José was born in Cochabamba, Bolivia on October 14 th , 1940, the 3rd child of Toufic Tuma Salaues and Camila Aid Said.

He was a lifelong learner who up until last week was re-learning Arabic, taking a class on Artificial Intelligence, regularly playing chess online, and exercising daily at home. On his nightstand was a copy of Lincoln's Gettysburg address along with poems, phrases, and books by Pablo Neruda, Rubén Darío, Octavio Paz, and his favorite author Miguel de Cervantes from whom he would regularly quote long passages from memory.

Orphaned at the age of 9, José worked as an auto mechanic to help support his sisters' educations. Eventually, he returned to Colegio La Salle in Cochabamba and continued to medical school at the Universidad Mayor de San Simón graduating as a physician in 1969. He was active politically as a student and as head of FRUC (Federación Revolucionaria Universitaria Católica) he pushed for reforms that improved the lives of his fellow students and those of his professors. It was this pattern of love for family and concern for his community and the environment that shaped his life.

José emigrated to the United States to continue his residency and medical training in Internal Medicine and Cardiology at St. Agnes and Hahnemann Hospitals in Philadelphia in 1971. A gifted storyteller, he would later regale his family and friends

with tales of these early days among the south Philly Italian-American community. His generosity and good humor endeared him to patients and colleagues alike, and he made lifelong friends easily.

In 1977, José moved with his young family to central Delaware where he established his medical practice and devoted himself to serving the community for nearly 40 years. Although he published in medical journals and won various awards and recognitions eventually becoming Head of Cardiology at Bay Health, his real passion was old-fashioned, face-to-face patient care. Strangers would often stop José's family members to tell them what an amazing physician their husband or father was and how much he had changed their lives by having saved a loved one or counselled them after a difficult loss.

He was a very sentimental person, archiving his children's drawings, scribbles, and notes, but he was a realist about life and was fond of a quote by Argentinian writer Ernesto Sábato: "La vida es tan corta y el oficio de vivir tan difícil, que cuando uno

empieza a aprenderlo, ya hay que morirse" (Life is so short and the art of living so difficult that by the time one begins to learn it, it is already time to die). Luckily, he was able to figure out enough of life's secrets to live exactly how he wanted, gardening on his farm, reading, and being surrounded by those friends and family he loved most.

José embodied the dream of immigrating to the United States and building a more prosperous life for himself and his family. He enjoyed the simple pleasures of life and, above all, giving back more than he received. He was only able to accomplish this

through his partnership with his lifelong love and wife of 57 years, Nedda Virginia Fuentes de Tuma who survives him, as well as his son, Julio R. Tuma of Bryn Mawr, PA (wife Kristina Hahn Tuma), his daughter, Virginia C. Tuma (husband Javier Krauel) of Denver, CO, and his five grandchildren, Sebastián, Zoë, Beatriz, Maxwell, and Benjamin. José will be forever remembered, missed, and loved.

A Memorial Mass will be offered at The Church of the Holy Cross Church in Dover, DE on March 27th at 10:30 a.m.

In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations be made to the Alzheimer's Foundation or the Arbor Day Foundation.

A link is attached below obituary.