ORLAND, Calif. – Frederick Raymond Perez passed away on June 15, 2018, in Chico, Calif.

He was born on Jan. 1, 1935, in Orland to Rafael and Maria Perez (Mañas), the youngest of six children.

He lived and was raised in Orland. He attended Orland High School, where he played in the school band, was on the yearbook staff, participated in the senior play, served on the student council and was student body president his senior year.

Fred graduated from Orland High in 1952 and left Orland for Oakland, Calif., where he attended Heald’s Business College, earning a degree in accounting in 1954.

He enlisted in the US Air Force in 1955 and served for four years, earning the GI Bill, at which point he was honorably discharged and returned to continue his education at Chico State, earning a Bachelor of Arts degree in education with a major in Spanish in 1963.

During this time he also traveled abroad to live with his family in Spain and study at the University of Seville.

He began his career in education in 1963 with his first teaching job in Oroville and soon moved to his lifelong post, teaching Spanish at Orland High School.

He taught at Orland High from 1966 to 1991 and was involved in a wide variety of activities while there. Fred truly loved his job and his students,many of whom he stayed close to throughout his life.

During this time he also spent a summer studying at the University of Barcelona and earned a Masters in Education from Stanford University in 1972.

After retiring from teaching in 1991 he worked at Orland Travel and finally at R&R Sales.

He was very involved in his community. For more than 40 years he was a member of the Kiwanis Club, working on almost every club project. Fred also was active in the Orland High Alumni
Association and the Glenn County Fair.

Fred was a 1993 inductee into the Glenn County Educators Hall of Fame.

For 30 years he was a member of the Glenn County Mental Health and Drug and Alcohol Board.

In 1998 he was elected to the Board of Trustees for the Butte-Glenn County Community College, a position he continued to hold until his passing.

In 2007 he was selected as "Citizen of the Year" at Orland’s annual Old Fashioned Fourth of July celebration.

His life revolved around family, teaching, his students, travel and his community.

His beloved parents, Rafael and Maria, and his brothers, Pablo and Pedro, preceded him in death.

He is survived by his sisters, Maria Alonso and Ysabel Alonso; his brother, Rafael (Patricia) Perez; and a multitude of nieces, nephews and extended family.

There will be a Rosary on Wednesday, June 27, beginning at 6:30 p.m. at Sweet-Olsen Family Mortuary, 825 A St., Orland.

The following day, Thursday, June 28, there will be a 10 a.m. funeral Mass at St. Dominic's Catholic Church, 822 A St., Orland.

In lieu of flowers, donations can be made in Fred’s name to the Orland Alumni Association, P.O. Box 1, Orland, CA 95963; or the Butte College Foundation, 3536 Butte Campus Drive, Oroville, CA 95965.