Manuela Valencia

In our heavenly kingdom and in the arms of Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ is to be found Our Beloved Mother , Grandmother, Sister and a Dear Friend, Manuela B. Valencia, at the age of 83; Our Beloved Mother passed away Wednesday October 5, 2011 at Odessa Regional Hospital. She was born June 27, 1928 in Loving, New Mexico to Manuel and Luciana Carrasco Balles. On February 27, 1943 in GrandFalls, Texas she united in marriage to whom, would forever be the love of her life, Augustine Portillo Valencia. Mr. Valencia preceded her in death April 5, 2003. Ms. Valencia was a Christian Catholic and a Homemaker., also preceding Ms. Valencia in death are her Son, Ismael Valencia, Daughter, Maria Elena Valencia and Parents: Manuel and Luciana Carrasco Balles. She is survived by Sons: David Valencia Sr. ( Irma ), Augustine Valencia Jr.( Audelia); Johnny Valencia; Armando Valencia; Samuel Valencia (Maria), Daughters: Yolanda Bernal , Carmen Cervantes, Adelaida Valencia Doporto all from Odessa, Sisters: Josefina Vasquez of Odessa, Texas, Lilia Calderon of Oak Cliff, Tx. Grandchildren 25, Great~Grandchildren: 52, and Great~ Great Grandchildren: 9 and a host of Nieces, Nephews Cousins, and Many Friends. We The Valencia Family would like to take this time and express our utmost sincere gratitude to each and everyone of you for all your prayers, floral, food offerings and especially your presence with us during this most difficult time. May God Bless You All Abundantly. Pallbearers will be her Grandchildren. A Rosary will be recited at 7pm Monday October 10, 2011at Odessa Funeral Home. Mass will be celebrated at 1:30PM Tuesday October 11, 2011, at St. Joseph`s Catholic Church with Reverend: Joseph Uecker officiating. Interment to follow at Ector County Cemetery RoseHill Section. Services by Odessa Funeral Home.

What children need most are the essentials that grandparents provide in abundance. They give unconditional love, kindness, patience, humor, comfort, lessons in life. And, most importantly, cookies. ~Rudolph Giuliani

Grandma was our rock; our main source of strength and faith. She taught us the importance of prayer not only in her words but more importantly by her example. As kids, Grandma would tell us it's time to go to bed and we would all get comfortable spread out all over the living room and fall asleep to her praying the rosary, making us all feel safe and secure. Many of us grandkids remember walking with her to church or watching her help make tamales at the St. Joseph’s kitchen. Grandma made sure that we thanked Jesus for everything and anything.She was a woman who never gave up on people; always praying for everyone. She was a true woman of God and a very loyal and generous person to her friends and family. We could always talk to her and felt more comfortable telling her things that we were too scared or nervous to tell our own parents. She had a way letting us know that everything was going to be okay. Grandma's smile was sincere and beautiful and we loved the sound of her laugh. It was always reassuring to have her near us. We each have our own special and unique memories of our time with our Grandma whether it be her watching us sing and dance, making us clothes to wear, rocking us to sleep even as we grew singing “Duérmete mi niño/niña; Duérmete mi amor; Duérmete pedazo; De mi corazón” as she caressed our face, dropping everything whenever we would call, watching for someone at the door always welcoming them in, or the little song she would sing while she would bounce us in her lap. We remember when we were being mischievous she would tell us “You don’t supposed to do that” or say “Tas loco Dios no quiere eso”. We remember that grandma would worry about each and every one of us so she would call one of us and if there was no answer she would continue down the line until someone picked up. Then we knew to set aside whatever we were doing because we would be on the phone no less than an hour. When she was tired we loved to see her sit down in her recliner saying “Ay mija/mijo I so tire” then begin to tell us stories about her life and memories with grandpa. Grandma's cooking was like no other. The first place we would go to as soon as we walked in the door was to the kitchen. She always had fresh biscuits or tortillas ready. Or had a spot for us to help her cook anything from cutting chile to measuring ingredients for the cakes made from scratch. It was an unwritten rule in the family that you could not leave Grandma’s house without eating something. Grandma would want us to be happy for her because now she's in peace and with Grandpa where they can dance together and walk hand in hand. What we learned from her life is God is our number one priority, always be grateful for what we have, have pride in our family and always be there for each other. She never gave up on anyone that went down the wrong path she only continued to pray for them. There is always going to be things that we could have said to our Grandma, but we know that when she is looking down on us there is no doubt she will see the impact she has had on our life. We will make sure that values that she instilled in all of us will continue to be passed on for generations so that her memory will never die. We are very blessed, proud and honored to be a part of this family. To our parents, thank you for making us a Valencia and giving us the greatest grandmother we could ever have wished for.

We are very proud to call Manuela Valencia our Grandma. We miss you Grandma.

Love Always,

All of your grandchildren: David, Augie, Amy, Ronnie, Tammy, Dana, Christy, Shay, Noni, Stacy, Sammy, Donny, Joseph, Derek, Brittani, Joey, Rocky, Isa.