by Frank Lee
news@thenewsleaders.com
A longtime businessman who arrived in the United States from Cuba and found happiness and success in Sauk Rapids selling meats died recently, three years after his beloved wife.
Rolando Castellanos, 89, co-owner of Manea’s Meats, passed away peacefully Nov. 12, surrounded by family at St. Cloud Hospital, according to relatives.
“It’s a big loss,” said Alina Manea, his daughter. “He was active until probably three months ago . . . doing bookkeeping and making sure we we’re all on task.”
The 64-year-old woman from Sauk Rapids said her father had pulmonary fibrosis, and during the last two weeks of his life, he was struggling with not having enough oxygen.
“He was very lovable, very open and everyone was his amigo,” she said. “He just loved his family, the town – everyone.”
Castellanos was born Jan. 14, 1926, in Baire, Cuba, and met his wife Aleida in 1945 by chance on a bike ride to work one day and fell in love. They were married four years later.
The father of five and his family relocated and lived in Connecticut until 1975 before settling in Sauk Rapids, where his oldest daughter, Alina, moved to after her wedding.
“I met my husband on the East Coast,“ she said of Donald Manea, a Sauk Rapids native. “My father’s passion was his family; next was work. My dad only knew how to work.”
Soon after relocating to Sauk Rapids, Castellanos and his daughter, son-in-law and sons Juan and Oscar opened Manea’s Meats, which is still family-owned and operated.
“We came here with nothing and he worked for every cent he had,” she said of her father, who also loved his native country of Cuba and was appreciative of life’s opportunities. “My mother’s parents owned a big slaughter place in Cuba . . . My dad went into the family business, so they sold meat to Havana to big companies and raised beef.”
Castellanos was buried at Benton Cemetery in Sauk Rapids, and the funeral arrangements were handled by Williams Dingmann Family Funeral Home in Sauk Rapids.
“We come from an immigrant family, and when you come to a town and you succeed, we have to be so thankful,” Alina said. “Everyone, they help us to get us where we are today. He loved the way the community embraced us. … We always felt welcomed.”
Survivors include his daughters and sons, Alina (Don) Manea of Sauk Rapids, Rolando (Martha) Castellanos Jr. of Woodbury, Oscar (Veronica) Castellanos of Sauk Rapids, Juan (Marion) Castellanos of Sauk Rapids and Cusi (Scott) Radzak of Sauk Rapids; sisters, Raquel (Agustin) Guerra of Sartell and Enid Castellanos of Coral Gables, Fla.; 11 grandchildren; 14 great-grandchildren; and many nieces and nephews.
Rolando Castellanos, co-owner of Manea’s Meats, passed away peacefully on Nov. 12 at the age of 89.
Soon after relocating to Sauk Rapids, Rolando Castellanos, a Cuban native, and his daughter, son-in-law and sons opened Manea’s Meats, which is still family owned and operated.
Rolando Castellanos’ daughter Alina Manea stands inside Manea’s Meats in Sauk Rapids. She married Donald Manea, a Sauk Rapids native, before they started the business.
