Carlos Antonio Pardo's Obituary
On Wednesday, September 21, 2022, Carlos Antonio Pardo, devoted husband, loving father, son, and brother, and doting grandfather, passed away suddenly and unexpectedly at the age of 60, in St. Louis, Missouri.
Carlos was born December 28, 1961, in Cartagena, Spain to Fernando Pardo Suárez and Encarnación Martínez Berman. Carlos grew up as the second oldest (and oldest son) of seven siblings. At the age of 18 he entered the Spanish Naval Academy and trained as an officer for one and a half years before leaving honorably to follow his passion for technology by working as a sound engineer for his uncle, Juan Pardo, a well-known Spanish musical artist. He then enlisted at age 20 to perform his required military service, also in the Spanish Navy, where he was stationed on the island of Alborán and later in Cádiz. Carlos received his Bachelor of Science (BS) in Information Systems in 1988 and his Master of Business Administration (MBA) in 1994, both from Saint Louis University. On December 22, 1989, he married the love of his life and soulmate, Debbie Pfeiffer, a fellow graduate of Saint Louis University, with whom he raised two wonderful children, a daughter, Raquel, an award-winning metalsmith and artist, and a son, Carlos, a practicing Doctor of Pharmacy at Express Scripts.
Carlos was a remarkable individual with a truly gentle and genuine soul who was capable of unlimited kindness and empathy. He viewed the world through the lens of a glass half full, driven in part by his twin passions for his family and for digital technologies. It was hard for anyone who met Carlos, not to instantly like him for his quiet, yet fierce intelligence, his humility and his infectious sense of humor driven by a love of truly awful dad jokes. A devoted husband, Carlos would always be by Debbie's side, whether it was going to the gym at 5:30am, attending happy hour with friends, hitching up the camper and spending a weekend at a state park, spending many hours in deep conversation about philosophy, life and love, or going on vacation to one of the many US national parks, Acadia, Glacier, Grand Canyon, Grand Teton and Yellowstone, to name but a few. A loving father, he deeply cherished his two children, seeing them as his greatest contribution to the world. He always encouraged them to follow their dreams, and he made sure that they had the emotional and financial support they needed to achieve success. Carlos was also a bona fide dog lover who adored not only his own dogs (Penny and Sophie) but also his children's (Lola, Mabel and Agnes), and he would take every opportunity he could to love on them and spoil them with too many treats. As a life-long lover of technology, Carlos
dedicated his life to helping leverage the capabilities of both new computer and information system infrastructure to extract the maximal organizational benefit at the institutions he worked for, including Saint Louis University, Ralston Purina, BJC Healthcare and most recently at Goldfarb School of Nursing. Carlos had many hobbies, from writing code to automate all the smart devices in his home, to tinkering and building items from toys for his grandson, to a new fire pit for the yard. He loved to play games like Dungeons & Dragons or plug into his Xbox for an hour to decompress after a long day. A devotee of Netflix, he liked nothing better than relaxing on the couch in the evening, binge watching crime dramas, but he was equally as happy going to catch the latest movie releases on the big screen with his family and friends.
Carlos was preceded in death by his father, Fernando, and his nephews, Fernando and Jose.
He is survived by his beloved wife Debbie, his cherished daughter, Raquel, and her husband Michael, his cherished son Carlos, and his wife Lisa and his precious grandson, Carlos, his mother, Encarnación, his siblings, Marián (Álvaro), Nani (Carlos), Fernando (Chon), Jose (Cuca), Alfredo (Isabel) y Leles (Kiko), his father- and mother- in-law, Bob and Sandy Pfeiffer, and sisters- and brothers-in-law, Denise and Charlie Gehlauf and Brent and Audrey Pfeiffer, along with many aunts, uncles, cousins, nieces, nephews and great nephews. Ever curious, ever kind, and always a gentleman, he is missed deeply by his family.
In lieu of flowers, the family welcomes anyone wishing to honor Carlos' memory to donate to The Carlos Pardo Technology Fund at Goldfarb School of Nursing. Contributions may be sent to The Foundation for Barnes-Jewish Hospital, 1001 Highlands Plaza Drive West, Suite 140, St. Louis, MO 63110 or submitted online at www.foundationbarnesjewish.org.
In accordance with Carlos' wishes, there will not be a funeral or wake. Instead, an event in celebration of Carlos' life will be organized by the family at a later date.
Services provided by Hughes Funeral Alternatives, LLC in St. Louis, Missouri.
Family and friends can sign a online guestbook at www.HughesFuneralAlternatives.com.
El miércoles 21 de septiembre de 2022, Carlos Antonio Pardo Martínez, devoto esposo y cariñoso padre, abuelo, hijo y hermano, falleció repentina e inesperadamente a la edad de 60 años, en St. Louis, Missouri, USA.
Carlos nació el 28 de diciembre de 1961 en Cartagena, España, hijo de Fernando Pardo Suárez y Encarnación Martínez Berman. Carlos era el segundo de siete hermanos. A los 18 años ingresó en la Academia Naval Española y se formó como oficial durante un año y medio antes de abandonarla honorablemente para seguir su pasión por la tecnología trabajando como ingeniero de sonido para sutío, Juan Pardo. A continuación, se alistó a los 20 años para cumplir el servicio militar obligatorio, también en la Armada Española, donde estuvo destinado en la isla de Alborán y posteriormente en Cádiz. Carlos se licenció en Ciencias (BS) en Sistemas de Información en 1988 y obtuvo un Master en Administración de Empresas (MBA) en 1994, ambos en la Saint Louis University. El 22 de diciembre de 1989 se casó con el amor de su vida y su alma gemela, Debbie Pfeiffer, también graduada en la Saint Louis University, con la que tuvo a dos maravillosos hijos, Raquel, una premiada orfebre y artista, y Carlos, doctor en farmacia en Express Scripts.
Carlos era una persona extraordinaria con un alma verdaderamente amable y genuina, capaz de una bondad y empatía ilimitadas. Veía el mundo con la lente del vaso medio lleno, impulsado en parte por su doble pasión por su familia y por las tecnologías digitales. Era difícil para cualquiera que conociera a Carlos, que no le callera bien al instante por su callada pero feroz inteligencia, su humildad y sucontagioso sentido del humor impulsado por sus horrorosos chistes de padre. Esposo devoto, Carlos siempre estaba al lado de Debbie, ya fuera yendo al gimnasio a las 5:30 de la mañana, reuniendose con amigos, enganchando la caravana y pasando un fin de semana en un parque estatal, estando horas de conversación profunda sobre filosofía, vida y amor, o yendo de vacaciones a uno de los muchos parques nacionales de EEUU; Acadia, Glacier, Grand Canyon, Gran Teton y Yellowstone, por nombrar sólo algunos. Padre cariñoso, apreciaba profundamente a sus dos hijos, a los que consideraba su mayor contribución al mundo. Siempre les animó a seguir sus sueños y se aseguró de que tuvieran el apoyo emocional y financiero que necesitaban para alcanzar el éxito. Carlos también era un auténtico amante de los perros, adoraba no sólo a los suyos (Penny y Sophie), sino también a los de sus hijos (Lola, Mabel y Agnes), y aprovechaba cualquier oportunidad que se le presentaba para quererlos y mimarlos con demasiadas chuches. Como amante de la tecnología de toda la vida, Carlos dedicó su vida a ayudar a aprovechar las capacidades de la nueva infraestructura informática y de sistemas de información para extraer el máximo beneficio organizativo en las instituciones para las que trabajó, como Saint Louis University, Ralston Purina, BJC Healthcare y, más recientemente, en Goldfarb School of Nursing. Carlos tenía muchas aficiones, desde escribir código para automatizar todos los aparatos inteligentes de su casa, hasta hacer juguetes para su nieto o intentar cultivar pimientos de padrón en su huerta. Le encantaba jugar a juegos como Dragones y Mazmorras o conectarse a su Xbox durante una hora para desestresarse después de un largo día. Devoto de Netflix, nada le gustaba más que relajarse en el sofá por la noche, viendo dramas criminales, pero era igualmente feliz yendo a ver los últimos estrenos de cine en la gran pantalla con su familia y amigos.
Antes que Carlos, falleció su padre, Fernando, y sus sobrinos, Fernando y Jose. Le sobreviven su amada esposa, Debbie, su querida hija, Raquel, y su marido Michael, su querido hijo Carlos, y su esposa Lisa, y su precioso nieto, Carlos, su madre, Encarnación, sus hermanos, Marián (Álvaro), Nani (Carlos), Fernando (Chon), Jose (Cuca), Alfredo (Isabel), y Leles (Kiko), sus suegros, Bob y Sandy Pfeiffer, y sus
cuñados, Denise y Charlie Gehlauf y Brent y Audrey Pfeiffer, junto con muchos tíos, primos, sobrinos y
sobrinos nietos.
Siempre curioso, siempre amable, siempre un caballero, su familia le echa mucho de menos. En lugar de flores, la familia invita a quienes deseen honrar la memoria de Carlos a hacer una donación al Carlos Pardo Technology Fund en el Goldfarb School of Nursing. Las contribuciones pueden enviarse a The Foundation for Barnes-Jewish Hospital, 1001 Highlands Plaza Drive West, Suite 140, St. Louis, MO 63110 o enviarse por Internet en www.foundationbarnesjewish.org.
De acuerdo con los deseos de Carlos, no habrá funeral ni velatorio. En su lugar, la familia organizará un evento para celebrar la vida de Carlos en una fecha más adelante.
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