August 7, 1947 — May 17, 2024
Walter de Jesus Fitzwater, 76, of Sugar Land, Texas, passed away peacefully in his home, surrounded by family, on Friday, May 17, 2024.
Walter was born on August 7, 1947, in Harrisonburg, Virginia, to Stanford Brason Fitzwater and Olga Freddie Perou. Shortly after his birth, his family moved to Cuba, where he spent his formative years before relocating to Florida in 1961.
Walter graduated from Melbourne High School in 1965 and then attended the University of Florida.
A 1972 cross-country excursion brought Walter to San Francisco, and almost immediately, he joined The Angels of Light theater group. He remained part of that family of people throughout his life.
In the mid-1990s, Walter returned to Jacksonville, Florida, to be with his mother. While in Jacksonville, he became a beloved active member of that LGBTQAI community. Walter got sober, wrote a memoir about his return to Cuba, and was heavily involved in playwriting and production throughout Florida.
One of Walter's proudest moments was in 2016 when he received a letter of thanks from then-President Obama about his book, "Cuba, The Island I Treasure." The letter from Obama about improving relations between the U.S. and Cuba was robust and heartfelt.
The book was published by Xlibris Publishing and it is still available on Amazon and its Kindle platform, AbeBooks, Apple Books, and Barnes & Noble.
Walter's career moved fluidly between his training in architecture and his passion for performing arts. He also wrote "The AIDS Trilogy" plays (still available on Kindle) in concert with the Positive Attitudes Resource Center in Jacksonville. The plays were presented throughout Florida as a tool for AIDS education to youth groups. Walter always led a Q&A after the plays were presented.
After some health struggles in 2016, Walter relocated to Sugar Land. There, he lived with his beloved cousin Janet Smith, his goddaughter Amanda Sandoval, and their family, which included several grandchildren, who were all by his side when he passed on. Walter is also survived by his siblings, Isabel and Michele, and many other cousins and friends. Walter eventually died from heart failure. He was cremated and waked in Sugar Land on July 14. His life was also celebrated at the AIDS Memorial House in Jacksonville on June 22.
Just before he died, Walter completed the final draft of a new memoir, about his years in San Francisco and his Angels of Light family. Walter's family and many friends (with his blessing) are devoted to publishing that memoir. The book is going to be beautiful.
Feel free to email Daniel Nicoletta at [email protected] if you want to stay informed of its progress or if you have any related photographic material you would like to be considered.
If you would like to contribute funding to this effort, donations can be sent by Venmo to @Amanda-Sandoval. Please indicate "donation to Walter" with your contribution.
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