Eliseo Basilio Arranaga

Eliseo (Al) of Oceanside, CA passed away at his home surrounded by his loving family on Monday June 20, 2011 ~ he was 92 years of age. He was born to Bernardino and Maria Arranaga on June 14, 1919. Al was a devoted husband of 64 years to Eva, the proud father of four grown children, grandfather of three and great grandfather of two.

Al was the fifth oldest of 12 siblings. Eliseo was orphaned at the young age of 13, which unfortunately, left the fate of caring for his younger siblings to the older brothers and sisters (Arranaga Clan), the youngest being 3 years old.

This difficult situation required the older siblings to enter the workforce at an early age to ensure that the family remained intact.

Even though these were difficult times, Eliseo shared many happy and heartwarming stories to his children about his upbringing and young adulthood.

All of his brothers and sisters were kept together because of their strong sense of loyalty, determination, and love of family. This is what Eliseo believed in.

Eliseo was known to say “As long as I have my health and my family, I have everything!” This belief remained throughout his life.

He attended Garfield High and graduated in 1938.

Eliseo enlisted in the United States Army and served in World War II from 1941 to 1948. He was placed in charge of military vehicles and repair. He continued in the Army Reserve until 1952, as an instructor of automotive equipment.

Eliseo met a beautiful woman , Maria Eva Hermosillo de Villaverde through a mutual friend, who happened to be her brother, Rogelio. He fell in love with Eva Maria and married her 6 months later in her hometown, Torreon, Coahuila on January 31, 1948.

Eliseo and Eva had 4 children, Elizabeth (spouse Roger), Thomas (spouse Edith), Olympia (spouse Patrick) and Marcia. Eliseo adored being with his grandchildren Michelle, Andrea, and Sean and great-grandchildren Haley 10 and Aidan 5.

Eliseo had always wanted to own his own business ~ his dream was realized when he had the opportunity to purchase an auto parts store in 1958 in Bell Gardens. He grew the business successfully for 41 years. The main store was called “Everybody’s Auto Supply” ~ the distribution warehouse was A & A Automotive. He always called the business his fifth child. He sold the business in 1999 when he was 80 years old.

He was an adventurer and an avid traveler. He traveled with his wife Eva and their many friends, enjoying trips all around the world. His favorite countries were China, Africa and Russia.

Eliseo made it to his 92nd birthday just last week on June 14, 2011. He enjoyed a lovely picnic in his own backyard with his wife, children, grandchildren, great-grandchildren and loyal caregiver and friend of 5 years “JM”. God gave him the strength to enjoy his family one more day and Eliseo passed away on June 20, 2011.