Santa Clara County CA Archives Obituaries.....Crema, Enrico June 17, 1996
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San Jose Mecury News, June 23, 1996
une 17, 1996, Los Gatos, Santa Clara, California

One of Enrico Crema’s trademarks was the trowel he often carried in his 
pocket, 
ready to help a friend dig into the earth and sow a seed.  It was symptomatic 
of his approach to life: to plant, to grow and to build a community around him.
 His life’s work - real estate - was derived from the ground, but he also had 
a 
construction company that built houses in Will Glen, Naglee Park and the Rose 
Garden neighborhoods of San Jose.  Although he became a proper businessman, 
dressed in suit and tie, Mr. Crema never lost his touch for the soil.“Wherever 
he lived, there were always fresh vegetables and fruit trees,” recalled his 
grand-daughter, Alice Crema of Santa Cruz. Mr. Crema, 98, died Friday after a 
series of strokes. Mr. Crema was born to a farming family in Italy and 
immigrated to the United States after serving in the Italian army in World War 
I.  He lived in Prineville, Oregon, with his first wife, Josephine, and made a 
living selling firewood he cut from dead juniper trees in the desert.  In 
1926, they moved to San Jose, and a year later his wife was killed in a car 
accident.  He was left to raise two sons, Elvin and Eddie. But Mr. Crema just 
worked harder, going to business school and studying engineering at Santa 
Clara University, and joined a realty firm.  A few years later, he became 
partners with Louis Solari, establishing Solari and Crema Real Estate in San 
Jose.  Solari later became mayor of San Jose.  Mr. Crema was a friend and 
helper to many in San Jose’s Italian community.  His real estate deals were 
more than business transactions; if he was friends with a client who was in 
danger of defaulting on a mortgage, he sometimes covered for him.  “He’d help 
them until they were able to pay him back later,” said his granddaughter 
Alice.  More tan a decade later, his real estate business was prospering, and 
Mr. Crema branched out into construction with his two sons.  He met his second 
wife, Marguerite Castoro Crema, through the Italian Federation. Although he 
had a busy life in San Jose, every few years he would return to his family’s 
farm in Italy.  “He was able to build a better life here, and he would
return to share it, “ Alice Crema said.  “He would help out on the farm, 
building something new.”  Mr. Crema eventually served as president of the 
realty multiple listing exchange in San Jose.  In 1969, after 40 years in real 
estate, Mr. Crema retired to Los Gatos and Crema Realty passed on to his 
nephew, Alfio Crema.  Mr. Crema remained active in the San Jose’s Italian-
American community and was a reliable presence at Sunday Mass at St. Mary’s 
Church in Los Gatos.  “He always sat in the fourth row and always had his 
beret on,” said Alice Crema.  His health remained good for many years, and he 
spent increasing time in his gardens and helping out friends in their yards.  
He often kept a shovel in his car for quick trips made on a moments notice.  
He was fond of telling his family, “You have to keep working with your hands - 
that’s what keeps you alive.”

Born: Sept. 11, 1897, Treviso, Italy; Died: June 17, 1996, Los Gatos, Calif.
Survived by: Sons Elvin Crema and Paul Castoro; daughter, Angelica Fenolio; 
nephew, Alfio Crema; 13 grandchildren and 12 great-grandchildren.  Services:  
Have been held.  Memorial:  Donations may be made to St. Elizabeth’s Day Home, 
1544 Mc Kinley Ave., San Jose, Calif. 95126 or to a charity of choice.
Source: San Jose Mecury News (CA), Date: June 23, 1996, Edition:  Morning 
Final, Page: 7B, Record Number: 9606290199




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