Rudy A Mariman

passed away peacefully on Tuesday, October 12, 2021, at the age of 80. Rudy was born December 16, 1940, in Berlin, Germany. Immigrating to the United States as a teenager, with one pair of corduroy Knickerbocker pants invited unwanted teasing from classmates. Rudy and his mom, Heidi, made Estacada, Oregon their new home. It was in Estacada, population 4,000 that Heidi met and married sawmill owner, George Mariman. Speaking only German, Rudy enrolled in high school in the spring of 1955, adapting to high school in a “foreign” country combined with the language barrier was challenging to say the least. Alone, after school each day, Rudy learned to speak English by watching popular American television shows such as, I Love Lucy, The Honeymooners, The Ed Sullivan show and American Bandstand, on a small black and white TV. Rudy adapted very quickly and by the summer of 1956 he was making friends and earning $1.25 an hour working at his stepfather’s sawmill. Mill work taught Rudy the value of manual labor and an honest day’s work. Graduating from high school in 1958, he entered the University of Portland earning a Bachelor of Science Degree in Engineering. By 1962, Rudy accepted an engineering position with McDonnell Douglas Aircraft Company in Santa Monica, California. Trading the grey skies of Portland for the sunny climate of Southern California with a monthly paycheck of $550, the 21-year-old Rudy felt as if he was living the dream. In his spare time Rudy’s passion for engineering and flight soared to new heights when he earned his Airman’s Certificate (more commonly known as a Private Pilot’s License) in 1965.

It was a coffee machine conversation in 1964 however that would chart a new course for Rudy. A co-worker encouraged him to buy desert land. Intrigued, Rudy embarked on a venture that would span the next twenty-five years. The to-be-developed high desert area of the Antelope Valley, north of Los Angeles, was slated to be aviation and transportation hub connecting Southern California with the rest of the world held promise and opportunity. Armed with new knowledge about land speculation, Rudy began buying and selling land providing him with residual income, which he mostly saved. Seeking to further his business career, by 1969 Rudy had earned an MBA from USC thanks to a scholarship from McDonnell Douglas – that would also be Rudy’s last year with the company. The institutional like culture of McDonnell Douglas held little inspiration for Rudy. By 1972, the newly formed Rudy Mariman & Company opened an office on Bayside Drive, in Newport Beach, just around the corner from his future Linda Isle home.

The year 1975 marked the purchase of Rudy’s first apartment building. Briefly investing in Dallas, Texas only to sell and return to Orange County, Rudy slowly began acquiring numerous Southern California apartment buildings. By the late-1980’s, the land business faded, and apartment investing became Rudy’s sole focus. In 2009 the re-named Mariman & Co. trained its sights on one sector of the apartment business, the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit program. With a strategy to acquire apartment communities in Southern California, focusing on affordability for working families, Mariman & Co. expanded his apartment portfolio. In-depth local knowledge, long-range planning and value driven management became the hallmarks of the Company, whose operations continue today, acquiring, re-positioning, and managing the apartment community portfolio.

Ambition, vulnerability, and vindication are common themes among first-generation Americans. Many successful immigrants bottle up feelings, rather choosing to do their best to blend into America’s culture of opportunity and success. But Rudy always carried himself like a hard-luck striver, scrambling for his first decent break. “A lot of what keeps me going is fear”, he used to confide in.

Proud of immigrating to the United States and becoming a citizen before the age of twenty, Rudy Mariman’s life is a true rags to riches story that can only be achieved in America. An ambitious yet vulnerable immigrant boy who strived via education and hard work Rudy lived the American dream accumulating a multi-million-dollar real estate portfolio.

Remembering his feelings of awkwardness as a teenager and moving to the United States with different customs, speaking virtually no English, provided the inspiration to form The Rudy and Gloria Mariman First Generation Scholars Program. Its mission, to provide college tuition scholarships for immigrants in Southern California or immigrant students of Rudy’s alma mater the University of Portland. Thousands of students will benefit from Rudy’s generosity in perpetuity. Heidi Mariman’s desire for a better life for her son, Rudy, really did come true. Now his success will benefit generations of first-generation American college students to achieve their potential through higher education and hard work, giving them their chance at the American Dream.

In 2001 Rudy found true happiness after meeting the love of his life, Gloria Soto. Married at the Montage Resort Hotel in Laguna Beach on February 23, 2013, Rudy and Gloria were constant companions. Whether dining out or Gloria cooking at home, traveling the world or socializing with friends throughout the later years of his life, Gloria and Rudy were always on the go.

Rudy Mariman is survived by his lovely bride Gloria. He leaves behind many friends who with cherished memories, will hold a private celebration of life at Pacific View Memorial Park in Corona Del Mar.

Fond memories and expressions of sympathy may be shared at www.pacificviewcalifornia.com for the Mariman family.