There will be a private graveside service at the Georgetown I.O.O.F cemetery. Arrangements are by Gabriel’s Funeral Chapel and Crematory of Georgetown. The family will have a celebration of life at a date and time to be arranged later.

Kevin was born in Paducah, Texas as Joseph Guadalupe Alvarado to Emilio and Vicenta Alvarado on December 16, 1955. He went to school at San Marcos High School. He married Ed Pope on April 26, 2016 in Round Rock. He graduated from Southwest Texas State University (now Texas State University) with a Bachelor of Arts in Sociology with a minor in agricultural science in 1999, a BA in Spanish in 2002 and a Masters of Arts in Spanish in 2009. He was certified by the Texas Education Agency as a secondary Spanish teacher and English as a Second Language (“ESL”) teacher. He taught in numerous high schools all over central Texas. He was involved with the Austin Center for Spiritual Living, and served for a time as a member of its Core Council.

He loved teaching and his fondest hope was that he had influenced young minds to love Spanish as much as he did. He was more than a teacher in a classroom. He was a natural-born instructor and was constantly teaching everyone who was near him about a wide variety of topics. Toward the end, he was teaching himself Dutch. He was an amazingly talented artist who drew his subjects with a depth of emotion. He was also a talented musician. He enjoyed playing the guitar and late in life taught himself to play the drums. He enjoyed collecting vintage acoustic guitars and loved buying and selling cars. Most of all, he had a huge heart. He would cry when the commercials with the shivering dogs came on the television. He was also a warrior. He learned to walk again after he had both knees replaced. He battled (and apparently conquered) esophageal cancer. He had a continuous struggle with his type 2 diabetes. He fought valiantly against the Covid infection and even cared for others while he was struggling to get a breath himself. His warrior spirit defended his second father Raymond Holt when doctors were giving Mr. Holt slim chances of survival. He brought Mr. Holt home and was instrumental in nursing him back to health several times.

Kevin is preceded in death by his parents and his brothers Emilio and Frank.

Kevin is survived by his husband Ed, his second father Raymond Holt, his sister Maria, his niece Jennifer Alvarado and his nephew David Stark.

The family requests donations in lieu of flowers to Meals on Wheels of Williamson & Burnet Counties, the Williamson County Regional Animal Shelter or the Austin Center for Spiritual Living.

The family of Kevin O’Donnell wishes to extend our sincere thanks to the wonderful doctors and nurses of the Ascension Seton Round Rock hospital’s ICU unit.