Vincent Michael Santos

Vince Santos died unexpectedly on Sunday morning, August 2, 2026 as his family was waking up for mass. As many of you know, Vince battled Juvenile Rheumatoid Arthritis since the age of two and all of the accompanying health complications associated with this disease. A few days before his death, he complained of congestion, chalking it up to Texas allergies. Nevertheless, Vince had plans to call the doctor on Monday to check it out. We never expected this to be the end.

Vince was born in Junction City, Kansas on April 16, 1965 to Joseph and Rita Santos. It would be the beginning of his habitual tardiness to events as there was a family joke that he was already late for Tax Day. His father was in the Army and his family lived on various military bases around the world until Vince’s disease brought his parents to the Houston area to be evaluated in our Medical Center by leading experts.

Vince went to Holy Ghost Catholic School, is a graduate of Strake Jesuit College Preparatory, Class of ’83, and a graduate of Houston Baptist University, Class of ’88, with degrees in Speech Communication and Business Marketing. Early on, Vince worked for Continental Airlines and American Express in corporate travel and technical writing. But later, Wendy nudged him to consider receiving Social Security Disability Benefits so that he could do the thing he loved most, serving others.

Vince had a passion for volunteering, and finally agreed to make it his full-time job. Together Wendy and Vince believed that this was his call and that God would work out the details of life as Wendy graduated with her teaching degree. Vince volunteered for various arthritis groups around the country, even leading a National Arthritis Conference here in Sugar Land in 2001. He received his training as a Spiritual Director at the Cenacle and was on the Spiritual Direction Ministry staff with the Emmaus Spirituality Center. He completed an ACTS retreat in 2023, and immediately fell in love with his ACTS brothers and joined the team at St. Jerome Catholic Church. He spoke at various events, telling the story of his health and faith, and served many other organizations in the Houston area and around the United States.

He shared his love for people and his talent for speaking everywhere, but here at St. Thomas Aquinas Sugar Land is where people knew him best. He was a member of the Knights of Columbus, he sang in the 9:30 Choir, he participated in Bible Study as a table leader, and most importantly he served our youth as a catechist for our Life Teen and Confirmation programs. Vince loved retreats both as a presenter and as a participant always seeking to grow with others on his spiritual journey. He believed his unique life experiences gave him a lot of material from which to work with, making it easy to connect with so many people. As an extrovert, Vince drew his energy from people. It was this “secret serum” that gave him more energy than most people. It was the main reason he ate out so much, hosted so many movie and game nights, and talked on the phone a great deal! He loved everyone he knew, always seeing the good in the them and their potential. A stranger was only a stranger at their first meeting.

Vince didn’t always believe he would be a husband and a father and waited patiently for God’s plan to unfold. After marrying Wendy, he always spoke of his life as enchanted. He couldn’t believe the life he was living. Always waiting to be pinched, he was overjoyed and lived life to the fullest not wanting to miss any moments. Vince and Wendy loved being married and felt that marriage was the most beautiful vocation and always championed married life. When Joy and Hope came along, Vince worried about being a good dad, but he was a natural and loved nothing more than supporting them in everything they did. He couldn’t wait to see them graduate and walk them down the aisle.

Everyone knows that Vince’s huge personality is unmatched, but inside of each of us is a piece of him for us to carry. He lived his life in service of others, modeling an honest life lived with great joy. Vince is survived by his mother, Rita Santos, his wife, Wendy Santos, his daughters, Joy and Hope Santos, and is proceeded in death by his father Joseph Santos, and Wendy’s mother, Agnes Malaise.

To honor Vince’s memory, the family requests donations be made to the St. Thomas Aquinas Youth and Young Adult Ministries. He deeply believed in these ministries as the foundation of our parish, and he would want nothing more than to see their work continue.

The family is also accepting donations to help with future expenses to assist with the care of his mother who lives with them. Please reach out to the family directly if you would like to assist.

The family wishes to thank everyone for every prayer, phone call, and text message. A special thank you to his HBU Fraternity Brothers for all their support with planning the services, and to YASTA for organizing the nine-day Novena to pray for his soul as he passes into glory with our Eternal Father.