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The Espinor family name is very unique as it does not officially exsist in Latin America the reason being is that our true family last name was Espino our roots derive from Mexico,Spain,France possibly even Portugal and Italy. Legend has it that when my great grandparents Cipriano and Frances Espino arrived to the United States of America my great grandfather did not know how to write so his fancy signature at the end of Espino was mistaken by the immigration officers as an "R" and thus became Espinor which Cipriano took a likeing to and kept it.Cipriano andFrances settled into the United Sates around the turn of the century. They had three children Alfred,Samuel, Lilian and Rose.
My grandfather was Alfred Alfonso Espinor the eldest son of the family he left his parents at the age of sixteen to see the world he was first married to Hermilia Garza of Houston, Texas he had four children from his first marriage named Richard, Ralph, Alfonso and Gertrude he later divorced and met my grandmother Rita Valdez Espinor of El Paso,Texas at the time that they courted my grandfather got involved in the Mexican Revolution of 1910 fighting against Pancho Villa to protect his mother Frances family hacienda located in the Northern Part of Mexico my grandfather had a close call when Pancho Villa was planning on capturing my granfather upon returning from the U.S. into Mexico fortunately his mother Frances heard the rumuors from the townspeople and was able to stop him from walking into a hanging party. Afterwards my grandfather married my grandmother Rita and they moved from El Paso,Tx and settled in San Francisco,Ca. in 1929 My father upon his first trip in 1925 fell in love with the city by the bay and that his how the Espinor Clan ended up in California. The had one child from his second marriage my father Alfred Valdez Espinor. Later in 1941 shortly after Pearl Harbor my grandfather joined the U.S. Navy as a seaman and traveled from California to New York and Florida he served aboard the Destroyer Escort ship the U.S.S Elderidge over the Atlantic European Theatre during World War II. After being honorably discharged after the war he returned home to his family in San Francisco, Ca. My grandfather followed his trade as a mechanic and worked with the Southern Pacific Rail Road he was also very poltically active and with the help of his friend formed the United Latin American Assoc. in the 1950's educating and uniting the Latino community which there charter was recognized by the State of California. My father Alfred V Espinor Sr. followed his fathers trade as a RailRoad Mechanic and Alfonso my uncle also served in World War II in the Pacific theatre and later back home worked for a time as a bus driver and railroad. My father Alfred V Espinor Sr. met my mother Clara M Gutierrez of Mexico City in 1965 and the later married in 1966 I was born in 1967 as Alfred V. Espinor Jr. I was raised in San Francisco,Ca. In 1986 I married Jaqueline M. Cabanas and we have one daughter Cynthia M. Espinor we divorced in 1993. I relocated from the Bay Area in 2000 and reside in Stockton,CA. I currently work in the Mortgage Lending field as well as hold a Real Estate License my profession has been in sales for over twenty years I am also active in my neighborhood community and the Latino Community and politically active.
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