Otto Orive

Otto Orive Pindado passed away Olympia, Washington on May 16, 2022.

He was born on August 11, 1938, in Camaguey, Cuba and moved to Havana in 1959 to complete his education at the National Public Health School for a career as a Medical Technologist, where he served as Assistant Professor of Hematology. In Havana, he met the love of his life, Maria Elvira Cruz Fajardo, and they married in 1961. His first child, Otto Orive II, was born in 1963 and was followed by the birth of his first daughter, Maria Elvira Orive, 1965.

In 1969, they emigrated to the United States through the Freedom Flights Program and settled in Olympia, Washington. Their third child, Lourdes Maria Orive, was born in 1970.

Otto worked at St. Peter’s Hospital in the laboratory and then began working at Olympia Medical Laboratory as a hematologist and Quality Control Supervisor for 12 years. In 1982, he joined Memorial Clinic as Laboratory Manager and Technical Director, where he worked for 17 years.

In 1999, he began work as Vice President, Operations, for the Western Institutional Review Board (WIRB) in Olympia, where he worked until he retired in 2008, although he continued to serve as a Community Review Board member for WIRB until 2019.

In addition to his professional achievements, he was proud to serve as a volunteer with the Thurston County Sheriff Deputy Reserve for twenty years.

He was a devoted and loving husband and father, whose greatest pride, in addition to his family, was to his adopted country of the United States. He was fiercely patriotic and forever grateful to a country that had welcomed him and his family with open arms and provided boundless opportunities.

Otto will be remembered for his sense of humor, his love for his work and his incredible work ethic; his devotion to his colleagues, clients, and patients; and his passion for technology.

He is survived by his loving wife of 60 years, his three children and two grandchildren.

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to Providence Sound Home Care and Hospice, 4200 6^th Ave SE, Suite 201, Lacey, WA  98503.