Dates
Rosaura G. Gonzales was born on August 24, 1931 in McAllen, TX. She was the daughter of United Methodist preacher Rev. Carlos L. Garcia and Luisa Grado Garcia. Named for her maternal grandmother, Rosaura was the granddaughter of Rev. Pedro Grado, who translated numerous hymns into Spanish. Raised in the church, Rosaura began teaching Sunday School when she was 12 years old and continued doing so well into her 80s. Due to her own mother’s illness, 11 year-old Rosaura was sent to Holding Institute, a Methodist boarding school in Laredo, TX, where she completed high school. It was there that she experienced first-hand the love of God through the missions work of the United Methodist Women.
In 1952, Rosaura graduated from Southwest Texas State Teachers College (now Texas State University) and began her career as a music teacher. That same year she married Tomas Gonzales. Her love for children inspired her to teach Sunday School and to direct children’s choirs at numerous chapels and churches throughout Tomas’s 30-year career in the United States Air Force.
They retired to San Angelo, TX in 1981, where Rosaura was actively involved in Stephen Ministries and the United Methodist Women.
She is survived by her husband of 71 years, Tomas, and their daughters Ofelia, Yolanda (John Cant), and Cynthia (Bill Guajardo), her sister-in-law Wendy Garcia, and numerous nieces and nephews. She was predeceased by her parents, her toddler sister Arminta, and her two brothers Carlos Garcia and Hector Garcia.
The family is especially grateful to close friends Carl and Pat Schlinke and Debi Pope, whose frequent visits brought joyful smiles, as well as to many years of Sunday evening telephone visits with niece Tabitha De La Cruz.
A private burial will precede A Celebration of Life service to be held on Saturday, 15 June, at 11:30 am at Sierra Vista UMC, 4522 College Hills Blvd., San Angelo, TX. Funeral arrangements are under the direction of Harper’s Funeral Home.
Memorials may be made to El Buen Pastor UMC, the church in which Tom and Rosa were married and that supported them in their early years together (209 E. Grove Street, San Marcos, TX 78666); to the Rosaura Garcia Gonzales ′52 Endowed Scholarship at Texas State University https://secure.ua.txstate.edu/site/… (Texas State University Advancement Services, 601 University Drive, JC Kellam 320, San Marcos, TX 78666); or to the charity of your choice.