About the Foundation

He washed dishes, dug ditches, worked the fields, and bagged groceries, soon realizing that without an education his future and prospects of a better life would have been very bleak.

Losing his father at such an early age, Lopez learned to cope with, and eventually create, a new reality. “I probably would not have been so driven to exceed if I had not had a good lifestyle and then gone to poverty,” he reflects. There is a dicho, a Spanish proverb or truism, which says, “Hay que aprender a perder antes de saber jugar.” Translated to English it means, “One must learn how to lose before learning how to play.” In effect, that is what happened to Lopez.

He initially enrolled in Cochise College in Douglas, Arizona, where he received an associate’s degree in 1967. He then earned a bachelor’s degree in accounting from the University of Arizona in 1969.

Why did he choose accounting? “It was the first course I took, and I liked it,” he said.

Armed with a college degree, Lopez took two more important steps toward the life he wanted. First, he married Czarina Montano of Nogales, Sonora, a young woman he had met during his days as a student at the university. Second, he decided to begin his career in Los Angeles, not Arizona.

His first job as an accountant was in the audit department of Deloitte Haskins and Sells, where he developed an expertise in the real estate field. It was during this time that Lopez launched his own investment company, borrowing $1,000 for a real estate purchase. He then reinvested the $3,000 profit from the first piece of property, parlaying that into a $5,000 profit.

The investment chain had begun.

Czarina also quickly became instrumental in a number of Tucson causes. Her past involvements have included Tucson/Mexico Sister Cities, Tucson Museum of Art League, Open Inn, Angel Charity for Children, La Frontera Center, Steele Memorial Children’s Research Center, Las Familias, Friends of the Cancer Center, Parseghian Medical Research Foundation, Salpointe and St. Cyril’s Foundation, and the Center for Integrated Medicine. She currently serves on the boards of San Miguel High School, Tu Nidito, Catholic Community Services, and the Catholic Community Services Foundation.

This profile, however, does not represent the sum of Humberto S. Lopez. Rising from a life-changing experience as an adolescent, he is more than a business success story and family man. One of his many other descriptors is that of philanthropist. Lopez believes that philanthropy also includes giving of one’s time, energy, and expertise.

Lopez supports causes related to education, health, and welfare. His extensive community service includes several board memberships at The University of Arizona and throughout the Tucson community. His efforts have been recognized by numerous organizations, including the Father’s Day Council, and he has been awarded City of Hope’s Man and Woman of the Year, the Tucson Hispanic Council’s Man of the Year, the University of Arizona Hispanic Alumni Association’s Alumni of the Year, the Arizona Hispanic Chamber of Commerce’s Man of the Year, CCMI Real Estate Legend, and the Tucson Chamber of Commerce’s Man of the Year.