Posted on Fri, Jul. 01, 2005
ZACHARY BOTAS
Helped others battle diabetes
BY ANNIE TASKER
atasker@herald.comZachary Botas drove to school Monday in his blue Lexus IS-300, the car that was his pride and joy.
Tuesday morning, he was found inside the car he loved, dead after slipping into a diabetic coma. He was 23.
Botas, who was born and raised in Kendall, was diagnosed with diabetes when he was 12.
Despite making compromises, he was determined to not allow the disease to control his life.
While at the Hidden Lake Academy in Georgia for counseling and medical treatment, Botas counseled other students about controlling their diabetes.
Luis Botas said his son received letters from all over the country thanking him for his help.
Botas worked for Pantropic Power for three years as an e-business salesman.
''He was a very good person, always caring, soft spoken, well mannered,'' said Ed DeTorres, his boss at Pantropic. ``He's the kind of person you wanted your kids to be.''
Once, Botas, ''a meat and potatoes guy all the way,'' ordered blackened tuna to impress a female co-worker.
''He always wanted to make people happy,'' said DeTorres.
The job at Pantropic gave Botas a feeling for what he wanted to do with his life. He was excited about completing his associate's degree in business administration at Miami Dade College.
Botas' two great loves were music and his car. He was enrolled in a jazz appreciation class this semester, but his favorite music was hip hop and R&B.
He labored over his Lexus' sound system, installing woofers in the trunk to better listen to his collection of rap CDs.
In addition to his father, Botas is survived by his mother, Jeanie Botas; and sister Sara Botas.
Services will be at 7 tonight at Caballero Rivero Woodlawn Cemetery, Kendall Chapel, 11655 SW 117th Ave.
In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations be made to the Diabetes Research Foundation, 3440 Hollywood Blvd., Suite 100, Hollywood, FL 33021.