Nelson Benedico Obituary

Nelson Benedico, born in Camaguey, Cuba, was the son of Josefa and Pablo Benedico. Educated by the Maristas Brethren at Colegio Champagnat, he was a superb basketball player and was the captain of Cuba's Olympic team in the late 1950's. He came to the United States in 1963, completing his education through the Master's level and becoming a citizen of this country. He worked for Head Start and Ma Bell before joining the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), where he worked for 32 years before retiring from the Miami office in 2004 as a Supervisory Investigator.

Nelson was an avid tennis player, scuba diver, and traveler. In pursuing the latter two, he literally travelled the world several times visiting all seven continents. He was joined in these adventures by his EEOC colleague (where they met in 1978) and partner (and later wife) of 47 years, Christina (Chris) Soule, who survives him. During this period, he also served proudly as a board member of the Cuban-American National Council.

Nelson had two sons with his first wife, the late Zoila de Zayas. His older son is the late Nelson Benedico, and his younger son is Nick Benedico, a civil engineer, who lives in Central Florida with his wife, Marina. Their children, Celine and Nicky, are Nelson's only grandchildren. He is also survived by his sister, Grizel Melillo, who lives in New Jersey with her husband, Vance, and their children and grandchildren.

A Celebration of Life will be held on Saturday, November 15th. Details, including the time and location, will be posted on www.DignityMemorial.com in the near future.