Helen Garcia

Helen Gonzalez Garcia, 91, died in her sleep on Sunday morning, the 17th of October 2010, at 8:30 AM in her home away from home in Tomball, Texas with her daughter Cordelia and her family.-Helen was born in San Antonio, Texas, on January 29, 1919 to Bruna Gonzalez, however Laredo was the place she loved and called her home.-As an orphan that lived through the "great depression" and survived the influenza epidemic that took her mother, she moved around many times before setting down roots.-A graduate of Hebbronville High School she also spent parts of her childhood in Bruni and Mirando City before arriving in Laredo where she found her soul mate in a Laredo native son, Rolando L. Garcia.-

Helen loved poetry and often quoted lines from her favorite poems or aphorisms.-Like many other women of her time, she soon watched and waited as Rolando went overseas to serve his country during World War II.-A continuous stream of letters linked their lives and kept their love and hopes alive until his return.-Helen and Rolando wed on September 29, 1945 and produced three beautiful children "? Graciela Elena, Rolando Lorenzo and Cordelia Margarita.-With a new house in the Heights she was soon living the "American Dream".

Her three children will always remember the wonderful aromas and flavors of the food that awaited them for lunch or the snacks that she would prepare for them after school.-Gone are the days when one parent stayed home while the other worked.-It is a memory that gives us the greatest feeling of comfort.-Every time we eat a plate of milanesa or southern fried chicken, a gordita stuffed with picadillo and fideo on the side or snack on a sweet gaznate or a piece of freshly baked pie, we are transported back to that sense of home and Mom.-Without argument though, the best were her oatmeal rock cookies with chocolate chips (two chips each carefully placed"a child of the depression) that we consumed in mass quantities. That was her life. That was Helen taking care of her husband, her children and her home.-And now she is resting peacefully under God's care.

She was preceded in death by her loving husband, Rolando L. Garcia; her mother Bruna Gonzalez and great-grandchild Baby Joseph Regino.

Helen is survived by her daughters Graciela E. Hively, Cordelia M. (Edward) Regino; son, Rolando L.( Carmen) Garcia, FAIA; grandchildren, Chrystina Cleveland, Geoffrey Hively, Omar Garcia, Christopher Regino, Michael Regino, Jennifer Regino; and great-grandson, Quentin Cleveland.