- Joseph A. Unanue
Infobox Person
name = Joseph A. Unanue
occupation = President, (CEO ) ofGoya Foods
image_size = 180px
caption = Joseph A. Unanue during WW ll
birth_date = birth date|1925|03|14|mf=y
birth_place =Brooklyn, New York
nationality = flagicon|USA American
ethnicity =Spanish American
spouse = Carmen Ana Casal de Unanue
death_date =
death_place =
parents = Don Prudencio Unanue Ortiz, Doña Carolina Casal Unanue
names in other languages =
religion =Roman Catholic Church Joseph A. Unanue (born
March 14 ,1925 inBrooklyn, New York ) was the president of the family ownedGoya Foods , which is the largestHispanic -owned food company in theUnited States .Early years
Unanue's father Don Prudencio Unanue Ortiz, was born in the Basque region of northern
Spain , immigrated toPuerto Rico where he met a young Spanish girl whose parents also had immigrated to Puerto Rico by the name of Carolina Casal. They were married in the island in 1921 and soon after moved toNew York and settled inBrooklyn . Joseph Unanue was the second of four children born to the Unanue's.Prudencio worked as a broker for Spanish companies doing business in the U.S.. He soon realized that there was a need for Hispanic products in the city and in 1936, he founded
Goya Foods , a food distributing company, inManhattan .Prudencio Unanue was very serious about children's education and enrolled them in
Catholic schools. Unanue attendedSt. Joseph 's grammar school and later,St. Celia s High School. Since childhood and when not in school, Unanue and his brothers had to work in the family business. His special job was bottlingolives . In 1943, he graduated from high school but, sinceWorld War II was in full swing, he was drafted into theUnited States Army .World War II
After basic training, Unanue attended the
University of Puget Sound inTacoma, Washington . However, due to the intensity of the war, he was soon sent to the battlefield. In 1944, his company landed inFrance and soon joined GeneralGeorge S. Patton 's 3rd Army at theBattle of the Bulge . Unanue was only 19 years old and he was a Private First Class, when his sergeant died in action. He was then named sergeant in the field and madeplatoon leader. Unanue pulled his men to safety and was awarded the Bronze Star for bravery. [ [http://www.lib.utexas.edu/ww2latinos/template-stories-indiv.html?work_urn=urn%3Autlol%3Awwlatin.226&work_title=Unanue%2C+Joseph Joseph Unanue U.S Latino and Latina World War II] ]"Goya de Puerto Rico, Inc."
In 1946, after Unanue returned home, he enrolled in
The Catholic University of America inWashington, D.C. , where he graduated with a degree inMechanical Engineering . He joined the family business, together with his brothers Tony and Frank Unanue. He learned every facet of the food industry. At first, the major supermarkets, such asA&P and Safeways weren't interested in selling anything with the Hispanic demography in mind. Eventually, with the wave of Hispanic immigrants landing in the United States, the supermarket industry started to take notice. Goya Foods started to supply Safeway's Supermarket inHarlem and the rest soon followed.In 1956, Unanue married
Puerto Rican wife Carmen Ana Casal de Unanue (art collector and philanthropist) with whom he had six children and 16 grandchildren.In 1976, Unanue was named president of the company whose principal base of operations was now based in
New Jersey . His brother Frank, ran the "Goya de Puerto Rico, Inc." located inBayamon, Puerto Rico . The company, under Joseph's leadership, became the largest Hispanic owned food distributor in the United States, with sales of over $800 million a year and with over 2,000 employees. It has facilities in Puerto Rico, Spain,Mexico , theDominican Republic andItaly . The company also has facilities in the United States in the cities ofChicago ,Miami ,Tampa andHouston .Goya Foods supports many organizations, among them the "Puerto Rican Traveling Theater", "Repertorio Español", "Ballet Hispanico" and the "Puerto Rican Day Parade". It also supports "The New Jersey Council for the Arts", "El Museo del Barrio" and the
Metropolitan Museum of Art .In 1985, Unanue's son Joseph F. Unanue, was named Vice President of Operations, a position he held until 1998 when he died suddenly. His younger son,
Andy Unanue , was named to replace Joseph Jr.In 2008, his son Andy was briefly a candidate for the Republican nomination for the U.S. Senate seat in New Jersey. He announced his candidacy on
March 23 ,2008 , and filed petitions for the race onApril 7 ,2008 . However, he dropped out of the race four days later, and his committee on vacancies designated former Congressman Dick Zimmer to enter the race under the Unanue petitions. [ [http://www.nj.com/news/index.ssf/2008/04/former_congressman_dick_zimmer.html "Former Congressman Dick Zimmer to run for U.S. Senate"] . "The Star-Ledger ",April 11 ,2008 . AccessedApril 11 ,2008 .]Later years
In February 2004, after 27 years as president of Goya Foods, 78 year old Joseph, and his son
Andy Unanue were ousted from the company by his two nephews. Joseph Unanue resides inAlpine, New Jersey with his wife Carmen Ana and continues to participate in civic and cultural activities. [Jackson, Herb. [http://www.northjersey.com/news/njpolitics/17121111.html "GOP rival urges probe of Senate hopeful"] , "The Record (Bergen County) ",March 29 ,2008 . AccessedJuly 3 ,2008 . "Rival Senate candidate Murray Sabrin on Friday seized on Andy Unanue's admission that he lived in New York City since 2004 while continuing to vote and register his cars using his parents' address in Alpine."]Legacy
Among the many distinctions which Joseph Unanue has received was being knighted in the
Order of Malta . He was presented with the "Key" to the city ofBoston, Massachusetts . In 1991 he was presented with the "National Hispanic Achievement Award" and was "twice" named the "Man of the Year" by the National Conference ofChristian s andJew s. The National Suppliers Association presented him with the "Leadership Award".Unanue has received honorary doctorates from Mercy College,
Long Island University in New York andFelician College in New Jersey. The Catholic University of America has named one of its campus houses, The Joseph Unanue House.Military awards and decorations
Among Unanue 's decorations are the following:
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*References
ee also
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Spanish American
*List of famous Puerto Ricans External links
* [http://www.neco.org/awards/recipients/josephaunanue.html Ellis Island Medal of Honor]
* [http://www.cchcc.net/article053.html Goya Foods President Is Ousted; Son Also Removed in Family Coup]
* [http://academic.shu.edu/latinoinstitute/ JAU Latino Institute]
* [http://utopia.utexas.edu/explore/latino/narratives/06Unanue_joseph.html US Latinos in WWII]
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