Maria (Minga) Dominga Alvarado was born at home on February 11, 1917, the eighth of ten children. Maria was delivered by her mom’s good friend, midwife and neighbor, Luisa Ramirez, who the matriarch of the first Mexican family in Odessa. Maria’s family came to Odessa in 1906 and only the 2nd Mexican family to arrive in all of Ector County. Maria passed away on March 21, 2019.
Maria graduated from OHS in 1935, and while she had no children herself, she continued to live in Odessa with her parents helping to raise many extended family members. When WWII broke out, she moved to San Antonio with her best friend and sister, Nicolasa Alvarado. There she attended Draughn’s business school and the San Antonio Community College. Maria later obtained high security clearance with the military and began working in civil service at Kelly Air Force Base. She retired in 1976.
Maria had many interests and hobbies when she was not working. She enjoyed golf, reading, cooking, gardening, swimming and painting. She took painting lessons in her late 20’s and became a proficient and very talented sketcher and painter over the next four decades.
She also loved travel. She was fortunate to be able to spend six weeks in Europe with coworkers and several trips to visit Mexico with her sister including Copper Canyon. She and Nicki spent two months with dear friends, Barbara and Bernie in New England. She and Nicki also took many of their trips with their best friends, Clara Lynch and Glenna McCord. She took many other trips with family and friends in her lifetime, culminating in a trip to Taos at 100 years of age with serveral of her great nieces and great nephew.
Her life was not without hardship. In 1985, she was diagnosed with cancer. She went into remission after treatment and lived another 34 years cancer free!
Maria and Nicolasa moved back to Odessa from San Antonio in 2008 to be closer to family and to help care for their older sister Toni Roberts, who passed in 2012. She was also close to her great niece Sharon Waite and Sharon’s grandchildren who lived next door.
With fun and laughter and always a sense of mischievousness, she lived a full life for more than one century! In her last years, she spent time with many friends and loved ones, and loved her daily crossword puzzle. She passed on March 21,2019 and will be greatly missed.
Maria was preceded in death by her parents, Guadalupe Salazar and Diego Alvarado, brothers, Asencion (Sunshine) Alvarado, Andrea Alvarado, Cipriano Alvarado, Jose (Joe) Alvarado, Gregorio (Greg) Alvarado, sisters, Juana Fernandez, Antonia (Toni) Roberts and Candelaria Alvarado.
Those left to cherish her memory are her sister and best friend, Nicolasa Alvarado, her nephew, Felix Fernandez and wife Betty of Odessa, Texas, nieces, Olivia Fernandez of Odessa, Texas, Elia Warren of Vancouver Washington, Olivia Torres of Mexico City, Mexico, Linda Eagleton of Wimberley, Texas, Lupe Alvarado of Midland, Texas, Judy Alvarado of Del Valle, Texas, Gloria Alvarado of Odessa, Texas, Sandra Alvarado of Fort Walton Beach, Florida and Brenda Alvarado of Odessa, Texas. Maria has many other living relatives spread throughout Texas and other parts of the country and in other parts of the world.
A visitation will be Monday, March 25, 2019 at Hubbard-Kelly Funeral Home from 5:00p.m. to 6:00p.m. with the rosary to be recited starting at 6:00p.m. Funeral Mass will be held Tuesday, March 26, 2019 at St. Mary’s Catholic Church at 10:00a.m. Burial will follow at Ector County Cemetery in the Rose Hill section.
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