By any measure, a life well lived! Yolanda, the first of 6 daughters and 2 sons born to Arturo and Luisa Garcia, began life on June 30, 1937. What followed was a very full and rewarding life full of trailblazing, triumphs over adversity and unending love. Her earliest memory as a child is of being rocked by her paternal grandmother in the chair that has remained a part of her life for over 84 years.
Yolanda was extremely skilled as a paralegal, able to record complex legal matters flawlessly via manual shorthand. She was the second woman hired by the FDA to be a field agent to oversee retailers’ compliance with the Food Stamps program. 35 years ago, she was the first and, perhaps still, the only female general contractor to build a home in El Paso.
Last October, Yolanda achieved the milestone of being a forty-five year survivor of breast cancer. Forty-four years ago, despite her own poor initial prognosis, she would comfort and counsel Spanish-speaking only women about their new devastating diagnosis. At the annual Susan G. Komen meetings in El Paso, she was always the first to sit at the tables commemorating survivors as they reached milestones such as 20 and 25 years. Oscar, her loving husband, has asked that donations be made to the Susan G. Komen Foundation in lieu of flowers.
But it was family and friends that she most cherished and that gave her the joy to live. Whether it be sleeping under the stars on the tarmac with her beloved sons at the West Texas Airport, video calls with her son, Gabriel and her Dallas grandchildren, Sunday brunches with her daughter, Yvette and her grandchildren, attending her 50 year Crockett elementary school reunion, tripping the light fantastic with her soul mate of the last 40 years, hosting Thanksgiving dinner that always included her father’s signature sausage dressing and her own ambrosia delight, participating in her monthly Bunko group.
At the end of life, her beautiful smile was ever present and a testimony to her joie de vivre!
Yolanda was surrounded by family when she passed away peacefully on February 21, 2025. It was 3 weeks before her passing that she described her life as 87 ½ good years!
She was preceded in death by her parents, Luisa and Arturo Garcia, Sr. and her brother, Arturo Garcia, Jr.
Yolanda is survived by her beloved husband, Oscar Loera; her children Ralph Escobar, Charlie Escobar, Dan Denham, Richard Fikani, Oscar Loera Jr., Yvette Rigsbee Baeza and Gabriel Loera; 5 sisters, Linda Juarez, Margarita Flores, Mary Lou Bejarano, Toni Mena and Martha Coonrod, and her brother Joe Garcia. As well as 14 grandchildren, Aaron, Alex, Becca, Caleb, Deandra, Gabriel, Gavin, Kody, Ian, Matthew, Michelle, Mylene, Richie, Shannon, and Tarra; 8 great grandchildren, Addie, Adella, Elliott, Gage, Issa, Irie, Rich and Violet; and many grand dogs. Also survived by lifelong friend Yolanda Hall and other very close friends including Livia Dix, Alice Aguirre, Felipe and Nellie Pacheco, Julie Granados, Maryann Herren Allison White and Doug Woloschek.
A Gathering of Remembrance for Yolanda will be held on Friday, March 14th from 5:00 PM to 9:00 PM with a Rosary at 7:00 PM at Martin Funeral Home West,128 N Resler, El Paso, TX 79912. Live stream can be found on our Facebook page by clicking on the following link https://www.facebook.com/share/12EMXqozGkG/
