Mr. Jose Villa

Mr. Jose "Joe" Villa was a modest man, quiet and observant in his ways. He was trustworthy and traditional in his approach to his life and in his relationships. He was tough-minded with the kind of “stick to it” attitude that earned the respect of all who knew him. He was also a man who was meticulous, carefully disciplined, and orderly in virtually everything he undertook. Realistic about life, he was always at the ready, prepared to take on responsibility.

Joe was born on January 4, 1928 in San Diego, California. He was the son of Nicholas and Augustina Villa.

Joe was raised with five siblings, Juanita, Johnny, Frank, Mary, and Marie Rose. Joe was usually involved in all sorts of activities with his siblings. He and his siblings experienced rivalries typical of a growing family, but they shared many life experiences over the years.

In 1948, Joe exchanged wedding vows with Mary Louise "Queenie". Empathic and loyal, Joe was committed to making his new family happy.

Joe worked hard to be a good father to his children and he did his best to fulfill their needs. Joe was blessed with four children, two sons, Joe and Conrad, and two daughters Deborah and Nancy. Another blessing for Joe was the gift of nine grandchildren, Joe, Dawn, Sarah, Damian, Reina, Nicolas, Pamela, Viviana, and Anthony, as well with six great grandchildren, Alicia Yvette, Andre, Martin, Joaquin, Rico, and Amari Arianna.

Fortunately, Joe enjoyed what he did for a living. Showing a strong work ethic, Joe worked diligently and did his best to succeed in his career. He was employed for almost 60 years by Solar Turbines. Joe was an exceptional design engineer. He was one of the more talented, prolific, hard working, and successful gear design engineers in the gear industry. He designed a wide variety of gearboxes for Solar to be used by the military, aerospace, power generation, trucking, and oil and gas industries. These gearboxes were used in packages ranging from small 15 horse power auxiliary power units to large 12,000 horse power generator sets. He designed a series of epicyclic gearboxes that became the standard arrangement in the gas turbine power generation market that Solar competes in. Over ten thousand gearboxes designed by Joe were built and are still running successfully or had successful service lives.

Sadly, Joe passed away on July 18, 2010. He is survived by his children Joe, Conrad, and Deborah; his grandchildren, Joe, Dawn, Sarah, Damian, Reina, Nicolas, Pamela, Viviana, and Anthony; great grandchildren, Alicia Yvette, Andre, Martin, Joaquin, Rico, and Amari Arianna; his brothers and sisters, Juanita, Johnny, Frank, Mary, and Marie Rose; as well as many loved ones; friends; and coworkers. Services were held at Our Lady of Guadalupe Catholic Church in San Diego, California.

Simply stated, Joe was a good and kind person, an individual who will for all time be remembered by his family and friends as being a caring and giving person, someone who was a vital part of their lives. Joe leaves behind him a legacy of life-long friendships and many cherished memories. Everyone whose life he touched will always remember Mr. Jose "Joe" Villa.