Oscar Galvan

Oscar was a Renaissance man who did everything well. He was an artist, musician, craftsman and educator. He was also a great storyteller with a great sense of humor and natural wit. He loved the natural beauty in nature. He had an affinity for the outdoors, be it a tennis court or fishing along the coast he loved. And, he was the best husband, father, son or brother one could hope for.

Oscar was very proud of graduating from Brownsville High in 1971. He told countless stories of how he did NOT take school seriously, teased his poor teachers and joked about the irony that he became an educator. He called it the ultimate karma! He had great memories of playing on the high school tennis team with his good friends Art Mata, Rudy Canul and Bobby Briskey. His journey brought him to Austin, where he met his future wife, and soul mate. He graduated from Texas State University-San Marcos in 1978 with a B.S. in Art Education.

In the first half of his career, Oscar touched many young lives as the Director of a residential treatment center for emotionally troubled teens with the Brown Schools. He had many heartfelt stories from that period of his life. In the second half of his career, he became a fulltime artist/educator. Oscar reveled in painting and showing his work. He felt it was a privilege to work at Austin Community College as an Associate Professor in the Visual Communications department. His colleagues were also close friends, especially his artist/poker buddies Sam Coronado, Andrew Saldana and Ed Acuna. He also loved teaching his private students at the Art Center of Williamson County. He enjoyed teasing the other art instructors, especially Micheal Hammonds and Katherine Uitz. And, he was especially close to his students Susan, Julia, Noelle and Emma.

He leaves to cherish countless incredible memories; his loving wife of 37 years, Lydia (Gomez) and son, Joey. He is also survived by his parents, Oscar (Sr.) and Mary (Weaver) Galvan and other immediate family members including: his sister, Diana (Fred) Garcia; brothers, Tony (Susan) Galvan and Rick Galvan; mother-in law, Thelma Martinez-Gomez; sisters-in-law, Cookie (Mike) Sparrow, Thelma (Luis) Casso, Sylvia (Cole) Widdowson, Pati (Ricky) Rodriguez; brother-in-law, Manny Gomez and wonderful nieces and nephews, especially Camille (Paul) Jury, Freddy (Holly) Garcia and Luis Casso-Gomez.

Oscar was preceded in death by his father-in-law, Manuel C. Gomez, and sister-in-law, Martha Elizabeth Gomez. His closest friends include his tennis buddies Ron Hagquist, Larry Higgins, Alan Mustin and Rick Fowler.

The family wishes to thank Oscar’s medical care team; Drs. Eric Hoennicke, William Kessler, Erol Ozdil and the caring nurses and staff in the cardiac ICU at St. David’s Medical Center South. And, we express our sincere gratitude to close friends, Drs. Dan and Glenda Matthews.

A funeral mass will be celebrated on Friday, October 25, 2013 at 10:00 a.m. at St. Catherine of Siena Catholic Church, Austin, with a reception and Oscar’s final Art Show, to follow in the parish hall. Instead of a rosary/vigil, an additional memorial service will be held at 7:00 p.m. on Thursday, October 24, 2013 at Cook-Walden/Forest Oaks Funeral Home located at 6300 W. William Cannon Drive, Austin.

In lieu of flowers, donations in Oscar’s memory may be made to St. Catherine of Siena’s Building Fund, Lifeworks, or a charity of your choice.

Morning has broken, like the first morning.

Blackbird has spoken, like the first bird.

Praise for the singing, praise for the morning,

Praise for them springing fresh from the Word.

Cat Stevens