Henry Mata was born in Los Angeles and them moved to a farm in Thermal, CA .and his farm grew onions, tomatoes, okra, string beans and dates on 10 acres of land. He had 3 sister. Henry was a very strong man who lived through many rough times as a child. His fathers life was taken at a very young age which separated his family and they had to live with different family members. Henry served in the military and was stationed in Japan. Henry had many stories to tell about his time in Japan. Henry was a story teller at heart on many occasions you could find a crowd around him at a family gathering and he would tell long stories. We all loved his stories. Henry loved his family and all his grandchildren. Henry was always up for a long adventures ride in the desert in his truck taking all the grandchildren in the bed through the dirt rodes. I do believe he even had one of those grandchildren pop out of the bed, but we won't mention any names. Henry would play long games of volleyball in his enclosed swimming pool with all grandchildren and this was when he was in his 70's. We could tell many stories about the adventure's of Henry Mata. But the most important part of his life was the love of his life his HONEY! Ms. Irene Padilla. Henry and Irene were inseparable for the past 43 years. We will all miss you!
