José Izquierdo was born in Spain in 1922 and was ordained a priest in 1953.

As a young Jesuit priest, he served at the Colegio de Belen in Havana and at the Colegio de Nuestra Señora de Dolores in Santiago de Cuba until 1961.

He would go on to serve the Belen Jesuit community in Miami from 1965 to 1992 in various roles, but most notably as a disciplinarian and principal. 

Lovingly referred to as “The Shadow” by students because of the way in which he would suddenly appear out of thin air, he is remembered fondly by alumni as having been instrumental in the shaping of their character.

Fr. Izquierdo was known to be stern yet gentle. He never raised his voice and his presence commanded unending respect from all his students.

He died on May 22, 1997. Soon after, the annual golf tournament, which raises funds for the Scholarship Fund, was named in his honor. 

He is posthumously inducted into the Belen Hall of Fame inaugural class.