Page created by: Doris Barahona-Burton

Dr. Barahona was born in 1933 in Santiago, Chile. He received his Doctor in Veterinary Medicine from the Universidad de Chile in 1959. In 1964, Dr. Barahona was granted a fellowship to study at the University of Wisconsin, Madison and immigrated to the United States along with his young family. He received a Master’s degree in Veterinary Science in 1965 and a Doctorate in Virology from the School of Veterinary Medicine in 1967. He also became a life-long fan of the Green Bay Packers during that time and was often seen in his Packers hat.

After receiving his Doctorate, Dr. Barahona moved to Framingham, MA to work at the New England Primate Research Center, a division of Harvard University. In 1976, he accepted a position with the Pan-American Health Organization, part of the World Health Organization, where he worked to create and implement vaccination laboratories for animal populations. During his time at PAHO, the family lived in Venezuela, Argentina and Brazil. Upon his retirement in 1994, Dr. Barahona retired to his home in Santiago, Chile where he was surrounded by friends and family. In 2017, he relocated to Charlotte, North Carolina to be closer to his children in the United States.

He developed Parkinson disease in the in the early 2000's and struggled with the effects into the end of his life. His most difficult symptom was "freezing" where his legs just would move forward. He got great pleasure from discovering new ways to "trick his brain" -- from taped lines on the floor to laser lines projecting from his walker. Horacio never gave up. Even after a debilitating stroke in 2021, he fought every day to spend one more hour with the loves of his life -- his wife Doris (67 years of marriage), his three children and seven grandchildren. We will miss him.