Anna - Lisa Gonzales Hernandez Armanino

Anna-Lisa Gonzales (Hernandez) Armanino May 6, 1967 - May 15, 2018 Anna Lisa Gonzales (Hernandez) Armanino passed away very peacefully at French Park Nursing Home on May 15, 2018 in Santa Ana, California at the young age of 51. She was a long time Fullerton resident since January of 1999, and loved her City, Church, and School community of St. Juliana Falconeri Church in Fullerton.  She was a loving mother, devoted wife, and dear friend, and had a strong base in Catholic faith, instilled by her parents at a young age, and continued on through her Catholic education and later years. She was born on May 6, 1967 in Toronto Ontario Canada to the late Antonia G. and Angelino B. Hernandez.  She lived in Canada as a child, and immigrated to Los Angeles when she was only 4 years old.   She is also survived by her older brother Art Hernandez, younger sister Emilline Nice, her Canadian and Filipino relatives, as well as her husband and two young children. Anna-Lisa graduated from Mayfield Senior Catholic High School in Pasadena, CA in 1985, where she was a great dancer, lover of popular music, and dear friend to all. Anna-Lisa met her husband Steven Christopher Armanino at the USC Masters of Real Estate program where they were students together until 1995, and later married on January 16, 1999. Together they raised two children, Allison (16) and Ethan (13) and lived in Fullerton since marriage until now, and were married for 19 wonderful years.  In addition to wife and mother, Anna-Lisa enjoyed a long and successful career in the field of urban planning and residential real estate development throughout LA, Orange, and Riverside counties. Anna Lisa enjoyed bringing joy to others, cooking, entertaining, and volunteering for National Charity League, delivering meals to the less fortunate through meals on wheels, loved shopping, traveling, hanging out with family and friends, and was an involved parishioner, room mom, volunteer, and friend to all at St. Juliana Church and School.Most of all,  Anna-Lisa loved and cared for her family and young children. All friends, family, church and school families and work friends and colleagues are welcome to attend a 7 PM Rosary for Anna-Lisa on May 21st, and a 10 AM memorial / celebration of life mass, Officiated by Fr. Michael Pontarelli, on Tuesday, May 22nd.  A reception in the Parish Hall will immediately follow. All events will be held at St Juliana Church in Fullerton, located at 1316 N. Acacia Avenue, Fullerton, CA.  In lieu of flowers, donations in Anna-Lisa’s name may be made to Meals on Wheels through their website at mowfullerton.org, St. Juliana Falconeri Church, or favorite charity of your choosing. Thanks to all who knew her and experienced the joy of her presence while she was still with us!Anna-Lisa ArmaninoEulogyMay 22, 2018~ As Read by Steven Christopher Armanino, her husbandI want to thank you all for your presence this day at St. Juliana Church and School. Anna-Lisa so loved her family and friends, and your expression of love and support as shown for her today, and over these past several years, have carried our family through this dark valley.Anna-Lisa was born in Toronto, Ontario, Canada on May 6, 1967, the second child of Angelino and Antonia Hernandez. Her father was an engineer, and her mother was a nurse, and both worked very hard to support their family and give their children the best life possible. Before Anna-Lisa was born, they emigrated from the Philippines to Canada, and vowed to bring more family with them, to seek better opportunities in the West. At the young age of 4, Anna-Lisa moved with her family from Toronto to Los Angeles, where they started a new life in America. Anna-Lisa was baptized and remains a devout Catholic as her parents were, and she attended Catholic School with her friends and siblings from early grade school through High School. She kept her strong faith throughout her life and loved God, and I know that she is with Him now in heaven, watching over her family and friends.She was the most daring and un-afraid of her siblings growing up, and was the balance of the family, being the middle child of Antonia and Angelino, cooking with mom for her siblings, listening to music, and hanging out with her dear friends in grade school through high school at Mayfield Senior High. When the siblings got in big trouble, Anna-Lisa once offered to sacrifice herself up first for a spanking, but placed a large book in her pants ‘for protection’. Her parents laughed so hard, they could no longer punish the kids. They had a very happy life growing up in the Los Feliz neighborhood in LA and later in the neighborhoods of Eagle Rock and Glendale. After considering careers in Architecture and Fashion, Anna-Lisa later attended Cal Poly Pomona to study Urban Planning, and later worked for the Cities of Calabasas and Rancho Cucamonga, where she was an associate planner. After a few years in the public sector, she decided to pursue her Masters in Real Estate Development at USC, where I had the joy of meeting her. We fell in love. I had so many great memories when she had her apartment in Glendale, where I would commute up from Irvine to spend time with her. After 4 years together, I asked her to marry me when we were on a trip to Kawaii. We were married in January 1999, where many of you were there to experience the joy of our wedding day. I brought Anna-Lisa over the line which she called ‘the Orange Curtain’, settling down in Fullerton, in our first home, a small historic bungalow, located on Malvern near downtown Fullerton. In her work life, Anna-Lisa was an amazing writer, and could make anyone her friend, so she was very successful in her pursuits and endearing to those around her. Her City experience served her well as she finished her degree and began working for private home building companies like Olson Co., Brandywine Homes and Stonegate Development. Part of my special personal relationship with Anna-Lisa was that we could talk about work, and she knew exactly what I was going through, because she did the same thing. In a way, we mentored each other, and that made us a strong force in our business and personal lives. So many of her work friends have reached out to me to share what it was like to work with Anna-Lisa, and the quote I love most is this: “Walking into any city hall Anna Lisa would immediately hug almost everyone she saw. If she had worked with them previously on a project they not only got a hug but a leg would literally wrap around. I started calling it the "Anna Lisa mount"I spent many hours in cars with Anna Lisa going to and from meetings. We always left on time but if she drove we were always late. Not because she drove slow but we had to rearrange all the shopping bags in her car to make room for me or whatever we had to bring to the meeting. She explained to me that her car held a continuous rotation of shopping items that were just purchased or being returned.Anna Lisa always had an amazing place to eat no matter what city we were in. She took me to a taco place in Buena Park once that she claimed to be "the best". When we got there it had been shut down and pasted onto the door were several copies of the local newspaper that explained the restaurant had been shut down permanently for health reasons. I sat next to Anna Lisa for years and she was truly a people magnet. Everybody stopped by to check in and say hello to her. She worked very hard and more importantly she really cared about what she was doing. She had a radiance and energy about her that lifted the spirit of the office. She would walk in everyday with her huge cup of coffee (typically Starbucks) that was covered in lipstick, carrying a giant pile of paper with a rolled up set of plans and she was usually on her cell phone laughing. Some of my fondest times were late at night when she was calmed down and was maybe a little tired, and she would open up about her family or a vacation she just took and I always realized that she was magnet for people in her personal life too, she always had a party or dinner to go to or family was coming over to her.”Words, of course, could never capture completely the richness and beauty of Anna-Lisa’s life and legacy. As a devoted wife for nearly 20 years, mother to Allison and Ethan, sister, wife, cousin, aunt, and dear friend to so many, Anna-Lisa was one of a kind. We all remember her infectious smile, hearty laugh, sharp wit and irreverent ‘salt of the earth’ sense of humor, giving joy and laughter to so many. She had a vast supply of cooking implements, giftwrap, and party favors at the ready at all times, and threw some of the best birthday parties for our children, which will be cherished events we will always remember. But most importantly, her faith, and deep caring and love of her family and friends are the endearing qualities we will always remember.One of the many characteristics of Anna-Lisa that still puts a smile on my face is the way she was able to so easily make friends with the people that came into her life. Whether it was a neighbor, an acquaintance, a new face at St. Juliana School and Church, National Charity League, or her real estate development colleagues at work. People tell me, and I have experienced firsthand, how she can light up a room, with her big smile and her sweet and happy disposition. She also shared and expressed her emotions and cheered us up in difficult times. Anna-Lisa had a way of making all people feel special.Anna-Lisa was a great role model for her daughter and son, and always thought of others first before herself. In addition to attending mass, she frequently volunteered at School and Church community and fundraising events. She was a big presence at school, participating in class parties and social gatherings at school and Church. I remember all the fall festivals, fish fry’s, and auctions we attended and volunteered at with our St. Juliana family. In her later years, Anna-Lisa and our daughter Allison, joined National Charity League, where they participated in lots of fundraising and volunteer activities to support our Fullerton community and those less fortunate. She told me that meeting the people receiving the meals, during her meals on wheels trips, and their grateful smiles were so uplifting, and made Anna and our daughter realize how fortunate we are. The NCL family continues to support Allison today, and see her through her Junior and Senior years. Anna-Lisa is watching over Allison to see that she continues this legacy, and follows her dreams in her future life, as she finishes High School at Rosary Academy.Anna-Lisa had some endearing imperfections, like letting the kids watch a scary movie at a young age, or letting them watch Ferris Beuler’s Day off when they were too young, and then hearing Ethan repeat the inappropriate parts over and over. She was a great entertainer and loved to enjoy food and coffee with friends, and of course she loved to shop. She put her daughter in the most beautiful clothes, and always presented herself well. Due to the combination of being a mom and working full time, she sometimes procrastinated on deadlines, but she was such a talented writer and pressure worker, that she could still make things happen and achieve a successful outcome. It’s these funny quirks and qualities that added to the fun and adventure of being her husband, and mother to our children.During Anna-Lisa’s aneurism 22 months ago, and time at St. Jude Hospital, and French Park nursing home, as we awaited and prayed for her recovery, I don’t know what we would have done with the caring ‘angels’ from the St. Juliana Church and School community, from teachers, to parents, and dear friends who prayed for Anna-Lisa and visited her in the hospital, brought us meals, drove our kids to and from school, paid Ethan’s tuition last year, gave us gifts at Christmas, and loved Anna-Lisa and our family so dearly. I also want to thank my daughter’s Rosary and Servite friends and families for the warm blanket of support you have shown for her and our family during this difficult time. For all the love and support, I will always be amazed and grateful.Furthermore, I could not have done this with all the support from an army of close friends and family that have helped me to continue our household and support the normal daily activities and growth of our young family during this difficult time. You all know who you are, and I am so grateful.While I am deeply saddened by the chain of the events that have led to her passing, I know that Anna-Lisa is in heaven, based on her close personal relationship and faith in God. Her deep beliefs, prayer, and relationship with God has been passed down to our children, and reinforced within our family and Church. When Anna-Lisa enters the gates of heaven, I know she will be reunited with her parents, relatives, and friends who we have already lost. She will be watching over us, especially our children, Allison and Ethan.Today is a celebration of her life. Anna-Lisa did not want us to be sad, but to have a party like she would, and enjoy the company of all of her family and friends. I invite you after this Celebration of Life Mass to join us in the Parish Center behind the church for a reception, where we will share stories, enjoy good food and coffee, and celebrate her life here, and her eternal life with God in heaven. Thank you for being here to comfort us, and most importantly to honor, pray, and remember Anna-Lisa. You all shared a special moment with Anna-Lisa, and she loves you all!!