Obituaries

Linda Curo Memorial Held on Barona Indian Reservation

The councilwoman had been a Tribes for Christ board member and school board member.

Ramona residents driving through the Barona Indian Reservation on Wildcat Canyon Road on Wednesday would have seen a huge gathering of people at Barona Mission.

It was a memorial to honor Barona council member Linda Diane Curo, 60, who passed away May 22, according to Sheila Alvarez, government affairs director for the Barona Band of Mission Indians.

Curo had been a founding member and board member of Barona Indian Charter School and a board member of Tribes for Christ.

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Barona Cultural Center and Museum had this to say on its Facebook page:

"The Museum is deeply saddened by the loss of Councilwoman Linda Curo, founding Museum Committee member, former Council Liaison, and Circle of Elders Committee Chair. Linda was a tremendous source of support, inspiration, and assistance for the Museum over the last decade. She will be greatly missed."

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Hundreds of people gathered for the memorial. Barona Casino across the street from the Mission was used for extra parking.

Curo was the mother of former Padres player Matt LaChappa who suffered two massive heartaches at age 19. The left-handed pitcher was picked by the Padres in the 1993 draft but the back-to-back heart attacks confined him to a wheelchair.

"I think he was the first full-blooded American Indian ever drafted," Priscilla Oppenheimer, director of minor league operations said in news reports at the time.


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