Washington Navarro

Washington Navarro was born in Osorno, Chile to Lucie and Valentine Navarro on

January 22, 1941. At the age of 2 he contracted polio and did not have the means to

get the medical help that he needed to get the treatment. This never stopped

Washington from striving to be like every other boy his age.

At 16, Washington went out on his own to make a living for himself and alleviate the

financial burden of his family. Washington worked on Radio as "Tito Alonzo" and on an

Easter Sunday morning he felt the call to be a Salvation Army Officer (Pastor). He was

commissioned (ordained) as a Salvation Army Officer in December of 1968 as an

Evangelist.

Lt. Washington Navarro served in Chile and while serving there, he took a group of

Seminary Students (Cadets) to help with the earthquake in Peru. There he met Dr.

Herb Rader who arranged to have him have corrective surgery at The Salvation Army

Booth Memorial Hospital in Flushing, New York where he met Captain Catherine

Crispell and they were married on June 17, 1972.

Together they served in Chile and Bolivia for 13 ½ years, living through 2 Earthquakes,

a Desert Flood and limited resources. Challenge was no stranger to Washington and

he met each one with grace, faith and dignity.

In 1986, the Navarros came to the US and served in Perth Amboy, NJ for 20 years,

retiring in 2006 and relocated to Raleigh, NC. Washington continued to serve as a

Sunday School Teacher until recently when his declining health made it more difficult to

attend. On January 1, 2025, a fall brought Washington to the hospital where other

health issues took their toll.

Whenever Washington went into an operating room or a procedure room, he would ask

to pray with those who would be attending him. Anyone who came to his hospital room

was asked "Do you go to church?". If they said "no" he would say that they should go

and he would invite them to The Salvation Army. If they said "Yes", he would say "Be

Faithful".

Washington was everything a husband, father and grandfather could be and even more,

he was a true example of a faithful, Christian man of God. And Major Washington Navarro is preceded in death by his parents, Lucia and Valentine Navarro, his brothers Ricardo and Cornelio.

His survived by his wife for 52 years, Major Catherine (Kay) Navarro, his son and daughter, Carlos and Cristina Navarro, his Granddaughter Kayla Koleser, his sister-in-law, Helen Crispell, his brother-in-law, Hal Crispell, his niece, Patty Navarro (in Chile).

A Celebration of Life service will be held 11 am Saturday, February 1, 2025 at the Salvation Army, 902 Wake Forest Road, Raleigh, NC 27604.

Online condolences may be made to the family at www.bryan-leefuneralhome.com