Otto's Memorial & Final Wishes Fund - Please Help

Dear family and friends,

It is with great sadness and a heavy heart that I announce the passing of Otto A. Orellana, who succumbed to lung cancer after a sudden but courageous 26-day battle with this awful disease. He is survived by his beloved wife, Linda; his daughter, Wendy; his granddaughter, Sara; and his son-in-law, Frank.

Having immigrated to the United States in search of a better life, he met Linda, his wife of nearly 44 years, and started a family with her. He survived a great deal of adversity throughout his life and was the rock that held his family together. It was shocking for all of us to learn that he had stage 4 lung cancer that metastasized to his bones. This news was even more overwhelming considering how frequently he visited his doctors. It seemed unimaginable that the disease could have progressed as quick as it did and gone undetected for so long. They carried on with the hope of treatment because he was like Superman to them—resilient, perseverant, and with an innate ability to bounce back from whatever ailed him with a smile on his face. To them, he was invincible.

He was an incredibly hard worker who always did whatever he needed to do and could do to provide his family with the best. He was a lifelong learner, an animal lover, fisherman, a captivating storyteller, and a courageous fighter to the very end. He was a man who loved life and his family with all of his heart.

His final wishes were to be surrounded by his family as he took his final breath, to have a memorial that could celebrate his life, to be cremated and have his ashes scattered in the sea, and for the love of his life, Linda, to be cared for once he departed this earth. Always thinking of others, what he feared most was not death, but rather leaving his family behind, especially Linda who has for many years dealt with her own debilitating illness and is aging.

Since his passing, many have reached out to the family with beautiful words of condolences and wonderful memories, and several have asked how they could help during this time of grief.

Unfortunately, Otto's family is not financially prepared to meet the needs of caring for Linda (their mother and grandmother) or providing for the memorial and final wishes that he so dearly deserves. Therefore, we are humbly reaching out to you—friends, family, and other communities of support—for help in ensuring that Otto's final wishes are met with greater ease and to the best of his family's abilities.