Velia Kroupa

1932 - 2024

Velia Kroupa
12/31/1932 - 06/13/2024
Velia Kroupa died peacefully June 13th in her sleep in San Francisco, California surrounded by love. She was 91. Born in San Francisco, Velia was the eldest child and only daughter of Cruz Jorge (originally from Puerto Rico) and Maria Aceves Jorge (originally from Jalisco, Mexico). Her younger brothers preceded her in death: Ruben Jorge and Benjamin Jorge. Velia was married to Charles Kroupa from 1961-1970 and had one child – Paul Kroupa – whom she adored.
A proud San Francisco native, Velia grew up on Silver Avenue, went to Corpus Christi Grammar School, Immaculate Conception Academy High School, and spent a lot of her childhood reading and helping out at her parent's grocery store at 25th and Alabama Streets. Velia later attended San Francisco College for Women (aka Lone Mountain) and later enrolled in their nursing program with St. Joseph's Hospital School of Nursing (at Buena Vista Park), graduating in 1955 with a Bachelor of Science in Nursing.
Velia was passionate about nursing. She started her nearly 40-year career as a staff nurse at San Francisco General Hospital specializing in Pediatrics and Communicable Diseases. She moved to the San Francisco Public Health Department in 1963 and later supervised teams of nurses performing outreach and home-based case management. In her spare time she went back to school and in 1970 obtained a Master's degree in Nursing at the University of California, San Francisco. She would later go on to teach: becoming a clinical instructor of Nursing at San Francisco State University from 1975 to 1978.
Velia retired in 1993, but remained active and fed her passion for learning and community service. She enrolled in the Fromm Institute of higher learning at the University of San Francisco, became a docent for the San Francisco Historical Society, worked part-time at Casa de Las Madres in the Mission as a bilingual consoler for victims of domestic violence, and volunteered with the Zen Hospice Project at Laguna Honda Hospital helping dying patients cross from this life to the next.
It was during the second half of Velia's life that her interest in spiritual development grew. Though a practicing Catholic, she was extremely curious and explored other methods and systems of knowing God. She traveled to New Mexico, Oregon, and Alaska for immersion into the spiritual practices of Native American Indians. She walked with shamans through the ruins of the Maya in Chichen Itza and the Inca in Machu Picchu, trekked across Africa to experience the rituals of the Masi tribes and climbed Mt Kilimanjaro, and traveled to India to study with Deepak Chopra. She explored the pyramids of Egypt and would later be ordained as a priestess of Shekinah through the Temple of Isis. She ventured to the Caribbean and was initiated as a daughter of Oshun in the Santeria tradition of Ifa. She was even ordained as a metaphysical minister at the Church of Amron and in 2002 completed a course of study at New College of San Francisco, where she obtained her second Master's degree in Woman's Spiritually.
Everywhere Velia went she had an impact on people's lives. She was a woman of principle, who dedicated her life to service: caring for others, and exuding love and compassion in every aspect of her life. She will be cherished in the memories of all those that knew her – most especially by her son Paul, with whom she had a very special relationship.
A memorial service will be held at the San Francisco Columbarium & Funeral Home (1 Loraine Ct, San Francisco, CA) on Thursday, October 17 at 11 am. Her ashes will be scattered on San Francisco Bay the following day. Should you wish to make a donation in Velia's honor, please consider giving to her favorite charity: Casa de Las Madres (www.lacasa.org/donate).