Obituary of Pedro E. Zahran-Colon

We are sad to announce that Pedro Eduardo Zahran-Colon passed away on October 24, 2024, in Reno, Nevada.  Pedro was an adventurous soul, artistically creative, and extremely kindhearted and will be missed by his many friends and family.    

 

Pedro was born in Sao Paulo, Brazil, on April 23, 1987.  He moved to Silver Springs, Maryland in 1990, and to South Orange, New Jersey in 1994.  He attended South Mountain Elementary School, South Orange Middle School, Columbia High School, and graduated from the Community High School in Teaneck, New Jersey, in 2005.

 

After graduation, Pedro worked in Reno for a year and then attended Full Sail University in Orlando, Florida, graduating in 2011 with a Bachelor of Sciences in Recording Arts, along with two associate’s degrees, one in Show Production and the other in Touring and Recording Arts.

 

Pedro had a natural talent for working with his hands.  In fifth grade, he built a functioning computer from scratch (while wisely disregarding all of dad’s suggestions).  He later taught himself auto repair and worked at his small repair shop in South Orange, at Garden State Gulf in South Orange in the late 2010’s, and last year as an aircraft mechanic at Aviation Classics in Reno.  He especially loved to refurbish older model jeeps and was always eager to volunteer to help friends with car repairs.  He particularly relished talking about engine repairs with his Uncle Mike.

 

Pedro loved the outdoors.  He was an avid disc golfer and snowboarder, and he especially enjoyed snowboarding around Lake Tahoe.  He also had traveled to many national parks where he took stunning photographs and videos.

 

Beside photography, Pedro's other creative interest was music. He started playing the drums in high school with various bands and had fond memories of playing with friends Kyle and Carl from Columbia. He later taught himself to play the guitar, piano, and bass. 

 

Pedro discovered a passion for flying in 2016 and quickly earned his private pilot’s license.  He had logged over 350 flight hours, was instrument rated, and was working on obtaining his flight instructor certificate when he passed away.

 

Pedro is survived by a large and loving family of his mother, Patricia Zahran, his father, Jeffrey Colon, his sister, Julia Zahran-Colon, and his younger brother, John Zahran-Colon.  He was especially loved by his grandmothers, Jeannette Zahran and Garneta Lokken, and his many uncles and aunts:  Angela and Rock, Laila and Marcos, Andrea and Guilherme, Eduardo and Cristina, Ueze and Georgiana, Michael and Katie, and Tim and Shelley.

 

We all will greatly miss his love of life, huge smile, and very generous heart.

 

In lieu of flowers, donations to the Grit N’ Snow program, which helps kids develop mental health and learn how to snowboard, at the Lakeland Hills Family YMCA in Mountain Lakes, NJ (lakelandhillsymca.com/give/), would be appreciated.