St. Rose of Lima Parish and the Greater New Haven Latino community are mourning the loss of Pedro Curbelo, trustee, longtime leaders of St. Rose of Lima and the Fair Haven community, and a founder of Elm City Congregations Organized, who died of cancer on Thursday. He was 76.
Born in Havana, Cuba, in 1936, he emigrated to the United States in 1966. He married the love of his live, Juana Luz Rivera on October 9, 1971. Both worked for Rockbestos Corporation.
Mr. Curbelo was a founding member and served as chairman and co-chairman of Elm City Congregations Organized (ECCO), training scores of leaders to put their faith at work in the public square, and leading scores of actions in Fair Haven and throughout the city to take streets back from drug dealers, build affordable housing, and clean up neighborhoods. The legacy of his leadership continues in ECCO’s successor organization, Congregations Organized for a New Connecticut (CONECT), launched last November and comprising churches, synagogues, and mosques stretching from Norwalk to East Haven.
Throughout his years of dedicated service to St. Rose of Lima parish and the wider community, he also served as president of the St. Rose of Lima School Board, co-founded the Fair Haven Housing Initiative, and presided over the St. Rose of Lima pastoral council. He was a founding member of the Knights of Columbus, Our Lady of Guadalupe Council 14198. He and his wife were devoted foster parents to 4 children overseas, whom they traveled to meet. He also served on the board of the Office of Urban Affairs of the Archdiocese of Hartford and on the National Catholic Campaign for Human Development of the United States Catholic Conference of Bishops.
Mr. Curbelo’s body will lie in state at St. Rose of Lima on Monday, April 30, 2102, beginning at 4 .pm. until 9 p.m. A Mass of Christian burial will be celebrated at 7:30pm. On Tuesday morning at 10 am, a prayer service will be held followed by a procession from the church to East Lawn Cemetery for burial. Besides his beloved wife of 40 years, Luz, he leaves to cherish his memory a brother, Luis Curbelo and a sister, Francis Curbelo. He was predeceased by his sister, Hilda Gorrin.
