Sportsmanship Teamwork Strength Character Discipline Dedication
These are words that describe Al Alvarez - The Man.
Al's ability to connect with and impact the lives of so many young individuals has been a continuing refrain since his passing. Nowhere has this been on greater display than where Al's son, Brian, attended high school -- DeMatha Catholic High School.
This website is a tribute to Al's life and his memory. To learn more about the scholarship fund established in Al's name, please click here.
Shannon Lechner's Reflection's of Al and Family: When Life Throws You Twists Personally I can say that I have never experienced death first hand. However, many people lose the one person who means the most to them every day, whether it’s a sibling, wife, husband, or best friend. Sometimes it’s both, but one can never completely understand how important someone has been in their life until they are gone. Life is fragile, and I believe it is important to live by this every day. Death is painful, and sometimes the emptiness can overcome you. People react differently when someone very close to them dies. Some may feel like there is nothing to live for; the emptiness feeling, and they may end up throwing their lives away, while others choose life, to live in the moment, be in this world, and aspire to be someone great; to make their deceased loved one proud. My boyfriend, Brian, unexpectedly lost his father this past summer. I will never forget that day. I remember receiving a phone call from him early in the morning while I was at work. I’ve never experienced someone so distressed in my life. I found it frightening, for it was hard to comprehend what he was saying over the phone. When Brian found the strength to clear his voice, he said, “Shannon, my dad died in his sleep last night.” I froze and my mind went blank. I wasn’t sure how to respond and found it hard to catch my breath. My first quick thought was that he might have been joking, and that Mr. Al was perfectly fine. It wasn’t until we ended our conversation that I realized what he had just told me. I broke into tears, uncontrollably sobbing. I then excused myself from work and called my family immediately. They too were shocked. My parents came home from work to support Brian and me, and drove me to his family’s house. Just seeing him walk toward my car in his pajamas and bright red face broke my heart. I thought I was going to collapse. As we continued to cry together, I told him that everything was going to be okay. I didn’t know what else to say. The whole Alvarez extended family was there to support Brian, his sister, and his mom. Although something so tragic and unfortunate happened to the Alvarez family, they are blessed to have such great friends and family to support them always. They are a very strong and close family. From this moment on, I knew that I would always be there to support Brian, knowing that he would be there for me, as well. The Alvarez family is a very special family. I have discovered that they always try to make the best of every situation, regardless of how difficult it may be. When I saw everyone that terrible day, I knew that they all were at a loss for words, and they were struggling to find the positives at that particular moment. But I was confident that some day in the future, they would find meaning and continue to live full lives. I will always remember when I met Al for the first time. He called me “Shechner” for whatever reasons he had, I do not know. He always picked on me in a friendly way, and I would just laugh. Al made everyone laugh. That’s what he did. He was fun to be around, and always loved to have a good time. Mr. Al was the nicest man, and always had sweet things to say to me. One would definitely consider him the jokester. Everyone wanted to be around him. His personality was infectious. He was probably the most influential, smartest, most dedicated, hilarious, and honest man whom I have ever met. I enjoyed getting to know Mr. Al for the time we visited together. Brian is very much like his dad, and I can see resemblances between the two of them every day. Brian and his father had a relationship that was more than father and son; they were best friends, and shared everything together, always joking around with each other. Brian has always been very mature and responsible, and takes matters into his own hands. He takes responsibility for his actions, treats people with respect, and is one of the most hard working people I know, just like Mr. Al. After Al’s death I realized that Brian had learned these virtues from his father, and thankfully I learned a lot from him as well. I aspire to be like Mr. Al. Sometimes people don’t listen to others until they are not around for you to listen to any more. I know that everything Mr. Al had Brian do was for his own good - To educate him, to grow him and to become the best person that he could be. One of the most valuable lessons that I learned from Mr. Al was that all hard work will pay off. He would never allow anyone to say that they were not good enough or that they could not make it anywhere. If they did, it would motivate him to work twice as hard and to prove them wrong. Mr. Al’s death reflected determination, strength, and commitment, because that’s the person he was. Even though this unexpected tragedy has been difficult to cope with, the Alvarez family, and myself, have been living life to the fullest. Everyone who knew Al understands that this is exactly what he would want us to do - No weeping, no negativity, no complaining, and never giving up! This was not an option for Mr. Al, as he taught his son, Brian, these very same things. Whenever I find myself struggling in life with school, sports, friends or family, Brian is there to speak on behalf of his father. He tells me to keep fighting until I find satisfaction with the result, to look at the positives rather than the negatives, that there are positives in every situation, and situations are for learning and growing. Do not dwell and sulk about such things, when really, it doesn’t matter. Be strong when things don’t go your way, and stay focused on what matters. When Mr. Al died, Brian and his mother remembered everything that Al stood for, and they now focus on the positives and what matters in life every day. I believe this is a perfect way to honor someone so very special. Sadly Al is gone, but we remember Mr. Al and take to heart everything that he taught us. He would want us all to move on with our lives, remember him, and laugh about all of the good times that we shared. That’s what we do! Every time the entire Alvarez family gets together we tell famous “Al stories.” That’s what we like to call them. Laughter is shared for hours remembering the good times. I believe it to be a coping method for us all. So I thank Al Alvarez for sharing his time with me, showing me the way to live happily, and in the future when I experience life's struggles, I will smile - remembering my friend, Mr. Al, and I will think positively and work twice as hard - for quitting is never an option. Al lives on…
Christmas 2011
Dakar, Senegal
Dear Kelley, Brian, and Kristen;
Apologies for not writing this letter to you earlier. It doesn’t seem possible that Al has been gone over a year now. I know that you, like the rest of us, continue to miss him terribly.
You knew a different side of Al—husband, father—than those of us who had the pleasure of working with him and calling him a friend. I just wanted to let you know that as special as he was to you, his family, he was also as special to us, his friends.
I was listening to a sermon a few months ago on the subject of Job and it reminded me so much of Al. As you know, Job was the guy in the Bible who suffered a lot. His friends came to him, and instead of really encouraging or supporting him, they sat around and tried to figure out what he’d done wrong—so, in fact, they just made him feel worse. At one point Job says, “I know that my redeemer lives…” In Hebrew the word “redeemer” means “someone who has your back, no matter what.” Redeemers were people that you would call into court, for example, to be a witness for you, or if you ever needed anything; redeemers were those you knew would be there for you, whenever you needed them. Now, I know that one redeemer Job is alluding to is Jesus, and that’s true, because Jesus is always with us. He is is, in fact, the Great Redeemer, since He is perfect and will never let us down. But for the ancient Hebrews, a redeemer was a human being, and Job is saying, “OK, these guys who say they’re my friends aren’t really my friends, they keep wanting to blame me for something and put me down, but I know there’s someone out there who will have my back, who won’t keep trying to point out my faults, but will support me and lift me up.”
And that’s what Al was to so many of us. I always knew that Al had my back, no matter what. I knew I could call him, night or day, and he would be there for me. I knew I could trust his advice because he always had my best interests at heart; he had no hidden agenda to try to make me fail, or to try to play one person against another. No, I knew that he was always there to encourage me, support me, and help me.
So, in this season of thanksgiving and Christmas, when we count our blessings and recognize the gifts we have been given, I wanted to let you know how thankful I am to have had Al in my life. He was one of the few “redeemers” I have had in my life, and I miss him terribly.
May your faith continue to uphold you; your memories comfort you; your family and friends support you; and the Lord continue to heal you.
Love,
Isabel Dillener
(a colleague from DevTech days)
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