Guadalupe Gonzales Valadez, born Dec.12, 1904, died July 13,
2003.
Guadalupe Gonzales Valadez, born Dec.12, 1904, died July 13, 2003.
She was the beloved wife of Alvino Valadez who passed away along with two teenage daughters in Santa Paula in 1944.
She was the cherished mother of Jess Valadez, of Hollister, Raymond Valadez, of Grover City (deceased), Johnny Valadez, of San Jose/Hollister (deceased), Lupe Arellano, of Santa Clara, Esther Valadez, of Santa Paula (deceased), Sally Valadez, of Santa Paula (deceased), Alice Gonzales, of San Jose, Alvin Valadez, of San Jose (deceased), Mary Gallego, of San Jose, Hortencia Aguirre, of Hollister and Frank Valadez, of Gilroy.
She was the mother-in-law of Cuca Valadez, of Hollister, Evelyn Valadez, of Grover City, Chendo Arellano, of Santa Clara (deceased), Jim Gonzales, of San Jose, Danny Gallego, of San Jose, Richard Aguirre, of Hollister and Charlotte Valadez, of Gilroy.
She leaves 27 grandchildren, 45 great grandchildren and 15 great, great grandchildren
Doña Lupe immigrated from Chihuahua, Mexico, her birthplace, in 1907 at the age of 3. Having lost her mother in a fire while still a child, her father entrusted her to several families until she married at age 18. In June of 1944, while her sons Johnny and Jess served in World War II, she gave birth to her 11th child. Two months later the family was struck with tragedy. Her husband Alvino and two beautiful teenage daughters, Esther and Sally, were killed in a horrific train accident in Santa Paula. Her eldest daughter Lupe laid in a coma for more than a month but survived.
After the accident, Doña Lupe became the matriarch of her large family. By washing clothes for families and receiving money from her sons in the Army, she managed to survive. In 1945, the family moved north to Hollister and worked on the Christina Ranch. In 1946, she moved the family to Gilroy and worked on the Glen Loma Ranch, finally settling in San Jose in 1947. Eleven years later with most of the children married she moved to Hollister. In 1966, tragedy struck again with the loss of her son Alvin, ironically dying in a fire not only as she had also lost her mother but because he had once been a fireman with the San Jose Fire Department. Several years later she lost another son, Raymond and soon thereafter another son Johnny.
Doña Lupe’s hard life did not destroy her resolve. She worked for the Carbone, Mathews, Avoli and Del Carlo families in Hollister until she was into her 90s, cleaning their homes. Simultaneously, she worked at the Hollister cannery for 10 seasons. Not succumbing to modern culture, she never took a vacation nor had any desire to travel. She neither smoked nor drank. Getting her out of the house, other than for work, was like pulling teeth. On her minimal income, she managed to purchase small homes, which became rentals. Although frugal, having lost her first home during the depression, she was charitable and giving not only with her own family but also with others in need. She would literally cook for “tramps,” homeless men that used to ride the rail cars.
Holding on to her old values, she never learned to drive, continued to cook on a wood stove until 1958, continued to wash clothes in her Maytag wringer washer well into the ’60s and to her dying day continued to wash her dishes by hand.
Known for her cooking, she could make the whitest, most appetizing tortillas in the family. Her beans and rice, a staple in most Mexican homes, were considered a delicacy by visiting relatives and friends. Her life was her family, and her home was truly her castle. Her quick wit and spurts of unexpected English in the home were always enjoyable to hear.
Visitation will be this afternoon with the Rosary offered at 7 p.m. Tuesday evening in the chapel of Grunnagle-Ament-Nelson Funeral Home, 870 San Benito St., Hollister.
Funeral services will be Wednesday morning, proceeding from the funeral home at 9:30 a.m., with the funeral mass offered at
10 a.m. at Sacred Heart Catholic Church in Hollister. Graveside services and burial will follow at Calvary Cemetery in Hollister.
