Oscar Garcia, Sr.
July 9, 1924 — January 1, 2014
Oscar Garcia Sr.
July 9, 1924-January 1, 2014
Oscar Garcia was born in Artemisa, Cuba on a tropical day. A healthy boy born with determination and perseverance and a will to succeed. A natural salesman, he sold fruit on the streets to make ends meet and help support his family at the tender age of 7. He had dreams of being an attorney but life always sidetracked him….he never complained, he just adjusted and forged ahead. He worked as a stock boy in a grocery store at age 14 and at the age of 18 he became a cobbler.
He met his love, Ildalia, when he was 14 and she was 11…they were together from an early age…they married on October 2, 1948…9 months later on July 2, 1949 their firstborn arrived. A healthy baby boy, Oscar Jr. He was followed by Ramon in 1951, and Mercedes in 1957, and Jane in 1965. 65 years later…they have 9 grandchildren, and 8 great grandchildren. He and his wife opened their own "bodega" after they married and they were grocers for many happy years.
Politically his island became unstable in 1963, and again he adjusted and forged ahead. At gunpoint he hijacked a 60ft. coal boat, loaded his family and friends, 60 of them, and set off through the Gulf of Mexico with dreams of political freedom in another country, Mexico. Stuck on a sandbar soon after embarking on their odyssey, they struggled for hours trying to free the boat off the sandbar. An English vessel came upon them at that sandbar and rescued them. They were taken to Port Arthur, Texas where the Catholic Church gave them a place to stay and helped them find work….
Life again changed but he adjusted and forged on…he picked tomatoes, he painted hotels, he bussed tables, he worked at factories, he had a mobile grocery store in a Volkswagen van, he worked, he saved…seven short years later, 1970, he was a proud US Citizen and a store owner once again. He took hold of his destiny from the start…never complaining, always figuring he would work it out…and he always did. He adjusted and forged ahead…
He leaves a legacy of strength, love, family, determination, perseverance, and an undeniable love of his wife and his life. Never complained. Always adjusted and forged ahead.
Mr. Garcia leaves behind his loving family: wife Ildalia Garcia of Arcadia, sons Oscar (Ana Maria) Garcia Jr., Ramon (Zereida) Garcia of Riverside, daughters Mercedes (Alberto) Sedano of Anaheim Hills, and Jane (Douglas) MacNeil of Arcadia. He is the beloved grandfather of nine grandchildren and 8 great-grandchildren.
A Funeral Mass will be held on Friday, January 10, 2014 at 11:00 am at Holy Angels Catholic Church, 370 Campus Drive
Arcadia, CA, 91007, (626) 447-1671.
In lieu of flowers, please donate to Leeza's Care Connection (Leeza Gibbons), www.leezasplace.org . Also, to www.california.providence.org , A Place for Care Givers and Care Givers Support.
Condolences may be sent to the family through our website.
July 9, 1924-January 1, 2014
Oscar Garcia was born in Artemisa, Cuba on a tropical day. A healthy boy born with determination and perseverance and a will to succeed. A natural salesman, he sold fruit on the streets to make ends meet and help support his family at the tender age of 7. He had dreams of being an attorney but life always sidetracked him….he never complained, he just adjusted and forged ahead. He worked as a stock boy in a grocery store at age 14 and at the age of 18 he became a cobbler.
He met his love, Ildalia, when he was 14 and she was 11…they were together from an early age…they married on October 2, 1948…9 months later on July 2, 1949 their firstborn arrived. A healthy baby boy, Oscar Jr. He was followed by Ramon in 1951, and Mercedes in 1957, and Jane in 1965. 65 years later…they have 9 grandchildren, and 8 great grandchildren. He and his wife opened their own "bodega" after they married and they were grocers for many happy years.
Politically his island became unstable in 1963, and again he adjusted and forged ahead. At gunpoint he hijacked a 60ft. coal boat, loaded his family and friends, 60 of them, and set off through the Gulf of Mexico with dreams of political freedom in another country, Mexico. Stuck on a sandbar soon after embarking on their odyssey, they struggled for hours trying to free the boat off the sandbar. An English vessel came upon them at that sandbar and rescued them. They were taken to Port Arthur, Texas where the Catholic Church gave them a place to stay and helped them find work….
Life again changed but he adjusted and forged on…he picked tomatoes, he painted hotels, he bussed tables, he worked at factories, he had a mobile grocery store in a Volkswagen van, he worked, he saved…seven short years later, 1970, he was a proud US Citizen and a store owner once again. He took hold of his destiny from the start…never complaining, always figuring he would work it out…and he always did. He adjusted and forged ahead…
He leaves a legacy of strength, love, family, determination, perseverance, and an undeniable love of his wife and his life. Never complained. Always adjusted and forged ahead.
Mr. Garcia leaves behind his loving family: wife Ildalia Garcia of Arcadia, sons Oscar (Ana Maria) Garcia Jr., Ramon (Zereida) Garcia of Riverside, daughters Mercedes (Alberto) Sedano of Anaheim Hills, and Jane (Douglas) MacNeil of Arcadia. He is the beloved grandfather of nine grandchildren and 8 great-grandchildren.
A Funeral Mass will be held on Friday, January 10, 2014 at 11:00 am at Holy Angels Catholic Church, 370 Campus Drive
Arcadia, CA, 91007, (626) 447-1671.
In lieu of flowers, please donate to Leeza's Care Connection (Leeza Gibbons), www.leezasplace.org . Also, to www.california.providence.org , A Place for Care Givers and Care Givers Support.
Condolences may be sent to the family through our website.
To order memorial trees or send flowers to the family in memory of Oscar Garcia, Sr., please visit our flower store.