Alex Vucetich
July 24, 1922 – December 8, 2011
Surrounded by friends and family, Alex passed peacefully at UCSF Medical Center. A long-time resident of San Francisco, he was 89. Born on July 24, 1922, in Seattle, WA to Clorinda (Raggio) and Danilo (Daniel) Vucetich, Alex arrived in San Francisco at the age of two, and spent the remainder of his life in the Merced Manor neighborhood near Stern Grove.
Alex attended Commodore Sloat Elementary School and Aptos Middle School and was part of the first graduating class of Lincoln High School. While in high school, Alex was a member of the U.S. Naval Reserves. He attended City College of San Francisco before enlisting in the U.S. Army Air Corps in 1942. Serving as a First Lieutenant, Alex flew in WWII and had his own crew at a very early age. After his discharge in 1945, Alex joined the reserves and went to work for Pan American Airlines. He retired from the U.S. Air Force Reserve in 1968 and retired from Pan Am as a Captain in 1976.
Living life to the fullest and on his own terms, Alex loved cars, sailing, his friends and family, and especially flying. A week before his death Alex was in his plane taxiing for takeoff with a long time friend, but still safety conscious, he decided to postpone the flight due to high winds. Alex loved attending air shows and looked forward to monthly lunches with “The Lunch Bunch,” a car club.
Alex is survived by second cousins Ricky Rolandi (Molly) of Potomac, MD; Susan Bray of Prescott, AZ; and Serena Curry (Rod) of Littleton, CO; as well as many friends around the world.
We want to thank the staff of UCSF Medical Center, especially Dr. Andrew Lai and Dr. Shilpa Shah, as well as the many devoted staff of the 9th Floor ICU and Palliative Services.
Private memorial services will be held at a later date. Condolences can be posted at cypresslawn.com.
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