Everyday
 People: From Cuba to the North Coast

 Manuel Suarez loves Astoria … and the rainPosted: Monday,
 June 30, 2014 1:51 pm
 By
 Ted Shorack

 The Daily Astorian | 0 comments

 How does one end up
 in Astoria after fleeing Fidel Castro’s Cuban Revolution
 and living on the East Coast their entire life?
 The same reason many
 people fall in love with the area: the green scenery, the
 river and ocean views, the small town atmosphere, and, the
 rain?
 “We like the
 weather,” said Manuel Suarez. “People complain about the
 rain, but let me tell you, it’s nice. It’s a nice
 change.”
 Suarez lived in
 Florida for 35 years before moving to the Northwest. With a
 son who lives in San Diego, he and his wife Kathryn wanted
 to move to the West Coast. The couple came to Astoria after
 trying out Seattle for a year.
 Kathryn visited the
 North Coast during a whale-watching trip and became enamored
 with what she had discovered.
 “When she drove through Astoria and Seaside, she just fell
 in love with the area,” said Suarez. A nurse practitioner,
 his wife transferred to Providence Seaside Hospital. They
 now live in Jeffers Garden.
 Suarez is a substitute teacher for the local high schools.
 “I’ve enjoyed getting to know and meeting a lot of the
 teachers at the different high schools and the students,
 too,” he said.
 Suarez was born in Cuba as the 13th child of 14 siblings.
 His father, who was an academic, was arrested following the
 Cuban Revolution in 1959. Suarez said his father was able to
 bribe a guard in order to make his escape and get on a boat
 destined for the United States.
 “Once he left,
 they weren’t very interested in the rest of us,” said
 Suarez, who was 6 years old at the time. The rest of the
 family was able to get tickets on a ferry boat with the help
 of a friend at the Brazilian Embassy. They landed in Fort
 Lauderdale, Fla.
 His father
 eventually got a teaching job at The Catholic University of
 America in the District of Columbia and the family moved to
 McLean, Va.
 Suarez sprouted up
 to 6-foot-6 and played basketball at St. Anselm’s Abby
 School, an all-boy prep school in Washington, D.C., He then
 received a scholarship to play for Jacksonville University.
 After college, he became a math teacher at a prep school in
 Tampa, Fla.
 At the other end of
 the state, his brother, Xavier Suarez, famously became the
 first Cuban-born mayor of Miami and of any major U.S. city
 in 1985. His brother is now a Miami-Dade County
 commissioner.
 Suarez began
 substitute teaching at Astoria High School first, but now
 fills in at Warrenton, Seaside, Jewell and Knappa. He
 teaches everything from physical education to math and even
 helps out in the special-needs class at Astoria. It’s
 another nice change from what he’s used to.
 “I find the
 students to be very respectful of adults,” he said,
 remarking at how they open the door for adults. “It’s
 something you don’t see at other schools.”
 Suarez has also been
 introduced to the local bridge players and is now a board
 member of the Seaside Bridge Club. He’s often playing down
 at the Port of Astoria offices or at players’ homes.
 Suarez still plays
 basketball from time to time at some of the local pick-up
 games. He hopes to mentor a basketball player at Astoria
 High School next year and take him to check out a game at
 Lewis & Clark College in Portland.