Guadalupe Lupe Santa Cruz Garcia

Guadalupe Santa Cruz Garcia was a hardworking, loving and modest family 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 and courageous which 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.

Lupe was born on December 13, 1941 in the very small town of Malpaso in Zacatecas Mexico. His parents were Nicolasa Santa Cruz and Jose Garcia. He was raised in Malpaso with six siblings. He had three sisters, Maria Patrocino, Alicia and Lourdes; and three brothers, Margarito, Jose Luis and Antonio. Being the eldest male, his siblings looked up to Lupe. He was the one person in the family who was able to rationally work through family problems. Lupe and his siblings may have had the typical rivalries while growing up but he was always consistently loyal to his family. Lupe lived in Malpaso until 1965 when he immigrated to the United States "el norte". Leaving his family was a difficult decision for Lupe, but he knew this was the best way to help his family.

As a young child, Lupe was never someone who needed to be the center of attention. He wasn’t pushy and always mild mannered. Growing up, Lupe helped his father tend to the family land and cattle. He developed a variety of interests, though, and the things he enjoyed doing he did well. He was always curious about the world around him and was often eager to explore it. In his spare time he thoroughly enjoyed reading, fixing cars and barbecuing. However, what Lupe enjoyed most was spending time with family and his many friends.

      Always considered to be a solid friend, Lupe was fortunate to have many friends and several very close friends during his life. He was committed to his friends and valued the trust he placed in them. It was not uncommon for Lupe (Don Lupe to most friends) to drop what he was doing for someone needing his help. His friends frequently sought him out for advice because he had a knack for coming up with practical solutions to any type of dilemma. While growing up, some of his best friends were his brothers, especially Margarito and Jose Luis. Later in life, he became very close friends with his brothers-in-law, Eustaquio Perez and Juan Acosta. His other close friends included Gilberto Moreno and Feliciano "Chano" Diaz.

      On Valentine's Day, April 14, 1970 Lupe exchanged wedding vows with Rosa Emma Perez at City Hall in Downtown Los Angeles, California. Compassionate and devoted to Rosa, Lupe held endearing, traditional values about marriage and family life. He took the responsibility of marriage to heart, giving it his total commitment. He was a source of strength to Rosa and using his gifts at nurturing one-on-one relationships, he worked hard to make his new family happy.

      Lupe brought the same traditional values in his marriage to bear on how he raised his children. Lupe was blessed with three amazing and beautiful daughters, Maribell, Rosa Maria, and Marisa. He was a wonderful father to them, helping them with their homework as children to teaching them how to change a tire once they learned to drive. Lupe was also a great listener, giving his daughters advice when they solicited it. He was very organized and his daughters will never forget his saying, "Everything has a place, and everything in its place."

Lupe and Rosa were also blessed with two adorable grandchildren, Tyler and Alicia. Tyler and Alicia are children of their niece Haydee and her husband Bruce who live in Arizona. Since both sets of grandparents had previously passed, Lupe and Rosa instantly became grandma and grandpa. The kids often spent summers with grandma and grandpa in California.

      Lupe greatly enjoyed what he did for a living. He was a hard worker who expected the same in return from his co-workers. He was skilled at working effectively in small groups and in one-on-one situations as well as handling solo assignments efficiently. He was an efficient worker, one who was very organized and paid careful attention to detail. His primary occupation was vault specialist, one who organized and maintained digital media in a special warehouse. He was employed for over 20 years at Point 360. Prior to that, he worked at the Andrew Jergens Company.

      Lupe liked to experience things first-hand as well as learn about them. He especially enjoyed reading about history and religion as well as watching old movies. He also enjoyed fixing cars and gardening, and tended to his fruit trees and cactus "nopales." Lupe was content to enjoy his hobbies alone but was also willing to share his interests with others. Anyone who came to the house always left with a little more knowledge and with a bag of lemons, apples or nopalitos.

      Lupe found pleasure in watching sports. He would watch his favorite sporting events whenever he got the opportunity. Tops on his list were baseball, bull riding and boxing. In the weeks before his passing, Lupe watched all of the FIFA Confederations Cup games. At the time of his passing, with his family around him, he was watching the final game between Chile and Germany.

      It was very interesting to see that although Lupe was traditional and conservative in many ways, he was very liberal in his political views. Lupe was a very proud Democrat and never missed voting in any election since becoming a US citizen nearly 30 years ago.

      Lupe was also a man of faith. He was a member St. Finbar Catholic Church for nearly 40 years. During that time, he was involved in the Movimiento Familiar Cristiano and supported his wife's involvement as a catechist, eucharist minister and lecturer.

      Although Lupe enjoyed being at home and tending to his yard and fruit tees, he liked to travel and take vacation. Since he was an early starter and had a knack for planning everything, traveling with Lupe appeared effortless. Whether it was a road trip or a vacation requiring plane travel, Lupe always studied a map of the city he would be visiting. This prevented him from ever getting lost. Plus, no matter where he traveled, Lupe always had a back up plan at the ready, just in case. Favorite vacations included visiting his family in Maryland and Virginia, taking road trips to San Francisco and up the California coast. Lupe also thoroughly enjoyed his most recent trips to New York City and going back to his hometown of Malpaso.

      When Lupe’s retirement finally arrived in 2014, he was excited to have more time to help his daughters. Not only did he help them repair things at their houses, but he enjoyed mowing their lawns and keeping their yards well manicured. He also had more time to travel and spend with his grandchildren.

      Mr. Guadalupe Santa Cruz Garcia passed away on the 2 of July, 2017 at 11:20am at Providence St. Joseph Medical Center in Burbank, California after a brief but valiant battle with cancer. He is survived by his wife Rosa; daughters Maribell, Rosa Maria and Marisa; his grandchildren Tyler and Alicia; siblings Maria Patrocinio, Jose Luis, Lourdes, and Antonio; and many nieces and nephews who all loved him very much. Services were held at St. Finbar Catholic Church. Lupe was laid to rest in San Fernando Mission Cemetery in Mission Hills, California.

      "Committed" is a word that well describes the life of Mr. Guadalupe Santa Cruz Garcia. He was committed to living the life of a good man who was both practical and trustworthy. He was committed to the traditional values that he upheld his entire life. He committed himself to being a hard worker who expected the same effort in return from those around him. Most of all, he was committed to those he knew and loved.