VCCCDRA is catching up on posting notices of colleagues’ passing that had not been posted in past years.
Octavio Sifuentes passed away on April 23, 2013, in Ventura, California. He was born in Jerez, Zacatecas, Mexico, on March 20, 1937, to Juan and Amparo (Castro) Sifuentes.
After the death of his father, he immigrated with his mother and siblings to the United States, where Octavio’s mother believed she would have more opportunities as a single mother. In 1956, he graduated from Cantwell High School in Montebello, California.
Octavio served in the United States Army, 574th Engineering Company, from 1960 to 1962 and in the Army reserves until 1966.
He earned a Bachelor of Science degree in English from Washington University in St. Louis, Missouri, and a Master of Science in Library Science from California State University, Fullerton. Octavio was the Senior Reference Librarian at Ventura College from 1974 to 2004. He served as President of the local AFT and faculty advisor for Ventura College MEChA. He was an active member of the Mexican American Political Association (MAPA), helped found Clinicas del Camino Real, and served as a board member of El Concilio for many years. Octavio retired in 2004.
Please use this link to read Octavio’s complete obituary.
Retired (February 2015); Dean, Career and Technical Education, Oxnard College (2008-2015); Professor, Business, Oxnard College (1992-2008); Adjunct Professor, Business, Business Information Systems, Moorpark and Ventura Colleges (1976-1992); Intermediate Steno Secretary, Moorpark and Ventura Colleges (1970-1974).