About Manuel

Born in Ponce , Puerto Rico , Manuel wore a permanent smile and lived life to its fullest with the attitude that “this has a solution!” “Esto tiene solucion!” Manuel was an excellent student, and for a time was the fastest reader in Puerto Rico . After the death of his parents, he could not afford to finish college. He joined the United States Air Force and served with distinction in the intelligence field, earning numerous medals, finishing his college degree, and traveling throughout the Mediterranean and Eastern Europe.

Upon leaving the service, Manuel became an entrepreneur. His boundless curiosity and passion for improving the lives of others, led him to work on amazing projects that include robotics, fusion, nanotechnology and telemedicine. Manuel was particularly excited about projects that would benefit his beloved Puerto Rico and other Caribbean countries. Through it all, Manuel was the ultimate “connector”. He kept in touch with childhood friends, and easily made new ones in every place he visited. He was good at connecting people because he believed in the power of the individual.

For Manuel, it was easy to convince people to join his quest and to assist the community in facing new challenges through his innovative approach of problem-solving. His consistent support of the Hispanic College Fund and the Latino Economic Development Corporation of Washington , D.C. , and other organizations, is a testament of Manuel’s belief that developing the individual empowers an entire community.

At the time of his unexpected death, caused by a rare cancerous disease, he and his wife Janet were totally committed to his most important mission: loving, raising and educating their daughter, Gloria Mercedes, now 7- years old.

The Fondo Memorial Manuel “Felo” Candamo has been established at the Fundación Comunitaria de Puerto Rico to support causes that were of great importance in Manuel’s life. In addition, the Manuel Candamo Memorial Scholarship Fund has been established at the Hispanic College Fund. To continue Manuel’s work, these Funds will:

• Provide college scholarships to Puerto Rican studentscommitted to making an enduring contribution to their families
  and their communities,
• Support non-profit organizations that foster community development and entrepreneurship as a means of building empowerment and economic  independence, and
• Support organizations providing cancer care or research, as cancer claimed the lives of his mother, his older sister, and finally Manuel.