1936-2023
Beloved sister, wife, mother and grandmother, Ester A. Dela Cruz passed away on January 25, 2023, in San Diego, CA. She was 86.
Ester was also known as Estelita and was born in a Fort McKinley in Makati, Rizal, Philippines to Ruperto and Maria, whom she lost in World War II, along with her two younger sisters. Ester and her surviving siblings then settled in Batangas, until she went to study Social Work in Centro Escolar University in Manila, where she earned a bachelor of science degree. Soon after, she worked for the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI), where she worked in the field operations division, rescuing and rehabilitating children from drug-addicted parents.
Her work with caring for children would follow her to the United States, where her lifelong dream of going to America came true when she traveled to Texas and lived with her oldest brother, Benjamin, his wife Irene and children in San Antonio, and then moved to Los Angeles on her own in her 30s to work as, first a governess and then in a home for the boys. While in LA, the former Army brat met Navy sailor, Ernesto at a mutual friend’s wedding, got married, themselves, in Las Vegas, and had their first child, Mary Jennifer.
Ester then joined her husband when he was stationed in Long Beach, then in San Diego, where they had son Theodore. A few years after their son was born, she went back to work; first at Nazareth House in Mission Valley, then to childcare and preschool as the family moved to Long Beach again, Alameda and Hawaii before settling in San Diego. Before she retired, she was head teacher and assistant executive director at Mt. Erie Christian Academy.
She was a devoted wife, mother, grandmother and Catholic practitioner, praying her rosary daily and attending mass at St. Mary’s Catholic Church several times a week. Always presentable, Ester believed in putting your best foot forward, connecting with her friends and family often, catching fresh air and taking in the breeze at the bay, and having a good cup of coffee or tea after every meal.
Ester was recently widowed when her beloved husband, Ernesto died in August 2022. They were married for over 50 years. She is survived by her daughter, Mary Jennifer, son Theodore, with wife Melissa, and granddaughters Sydney, Lucie and Penelope. And she was the matriarch of her Austria family, the last of her siblings to pass away.
The vigil service will be held on February 22, 2023, 3:00 p.m. – 10:00 p.m. at Funeraria del Angel (607 National City Blvd., National City, CA). The funeral mass will be held at 12 p.m. on February 23 at St. Mary’s Catholic Church (426 E. 7th St., National City, CA). The burial ceremony will be held at 2:00 p.m. at Miramar National Cemetery (5795 Nobel Dr., San Diego, CA).
Donations to her longtime parish, St. Mary’s Catholic Church and to The Padre Pio Foundation of America can be made in the name of Mrs. Ester Dela Cruz, in lieu of flowers.
COMPARTA UN OBITUARIO
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