Francisco Orlando Avila of Lebanon, Tennessee

July 23, 1955 - June 1, 2022

Francisco Orlando Avila, “T,” as his children refer to him, was born July 23 ^rd , 1955 in Havana, Cuba to Carmen and Francisco Avila I. He was a Father, Brother, and Husband, but above all he identified as a doctor and a healer.  Frank was a fighter, overcoming every challenge that life threw his way, beginning with his immigration to the United States with the 1962 Peter Pan program. He believed hard work and determination were the keys to success, which he emulated throughout his life. He worked to pay his way through high school and college in Miami, Florida and eventually landed at East Tennessee State University for medical school. For over 33 years, Frank practiced emergency medicine and aided thousands of patients throughout his career. To this day, patients refer to him as one of the most kind and caring doctors they have ever met.

Though medicine was his passion, he lived for his family. He leaves behind Abe, Abbey, Luke, and Justine who were all lucky enough to have a piece of Frank in their core DNA. They will continue to honor their father’s legacy and strive to help the underdogs, as he would’ve wanted. They will continue to drink Cuban coffee, eat their arroz con frijoles, and buy the random lottery tickets, because despite the odds, as Frank would say: “someone’s got to win T.” He was a fighter until his final days, as he stubbornly confronted kidney failure. Frank is survived by his wife, Laura; his children, Abe, Abbey, Luke, Justine, and Nathan; and his pride and joy, his grand-dog, Jack.