Alexandre Campos Da Costa

Middletown, RI - Alexandre Campos daCosta, 40, of 215 North Fenner Avenue, Middletown, RI, died Tuesday, August 22, 2006 at Rhode Island Hospital, Providence, RI. He was the husband of Carla D. Panaggio. Born in Rio de Janiero, Brazil, on August 13, 1966, he was the son of Pierre and Merces Campos Costa.Prior to coming to the United States Alex was a lifeguard working for the Maritime Rescue Corps in Rio de Janeiro. He achieved over 350 registered rescues and was commended for heroic actions in dangerous surf conditions 4 times. When Alex first came to the United States he lived and worked in California. He also spent a season in Alaska on a fishing boat. Eventually Alex?s love of surfing brought him to Hawaii where he met his future wife, Carla. He also became involved in canoe paddling, distant running, open water swimming, and water polo. Within 6 years he logged over 350 long distance running miles in competition including Honolulu, Kona and Maui marathons. He finished 18th in the Sept. 2000 ?Run to the Sun?, a 36 mile ultra-marathon to the top of Haleakala Volcano in Maui. During his time in Hawaii he worked in restaurants and construction, in particular building swimming pools. He had a special talent for custom tiling pools, pool decks and floors. He also shaped his own surfboards. In Maui, Alex was involved with Catholic Community of Maria Lanakila Church where he served as a Eucharistic minister for patients in the hospital. After becoming a leukemia patient he devoted his time and energy to the local Leukemia and Lymphoma Society in Maui. When he moved to Newport he continued these efforts by working with the RI Blood Center and the National Marrow Donor Program helping with blood marrow drives. This included speaking to groups on the importance of becoming a donor. He coached water polo at Roger Williams University and the YMCA, and he continued his lifelong passion for surfing. Alex was proud to play the role of Christopher Columbus in the Newport Columbus Day Parade for the past 3 years. Alex attended St. Mary?s Church in Newport. He was most recently employed with Simaan Properties. Besides his wife he is survived by his brother Pierre Campos da Costa and his sister Christina Campos da Costa both of Brazil and his two nieces Muriel M. Urquhart and Kyla E. Burgess. His funeral will be held on Saturday, August 26, 2006, at 8:00 am from the Memorial Funeral Home, 375 Broadway, followed by a Mass of Christian Burial at 9:00am, in St. Marys Church, Spring Street, Newport. Burial will be in St. Columbas Cemetery in Middletown.Donations in Alex?s memory can be made to The Muriel Fund at Citizen?s Bank.