Odilón de León

Odilón de León passed away on January 3, 2017 at the Community Living Center of the V.A. Hospital in San Antonio, Texas. He was born in Von Ormy, Texas to Genaro and Helena who had to give him permission to enlist in the United States Navy because he was underage. The World War II Veteran then enlisted on September 22, 1944 and was badly burned the evening of May 3, 1945 when an enemy plane crashed into the port side of his ship, the USS LSM(R)-195, approximately 100 miles from the island of Okinawa. De León remembered surviving the incident by huddling with other sailors in a circle in the water and using a flashlight to signal a ship. The destroyer, the USS Bache, finally picked them up sometime before dawn. Eventually he was put on the hospital ship the USS Solace and taken to Tinian Island for treatment of his wounds. De León always spoke highly of his father who was also a Purple Heart recipient for wounds received in the Meuse-Argonne Offensive in France during World I. He said the elder De León, being patriotic as a result of his own wartime service, had inspired him toward the military. Odilon’s brothers Santiago (Army) and Leo (Navy) served in World War II. His brother Martin (Army) served in the Cold War in Germany. Odilón was proud that his family, on this mother’s side, was part of the sixteen families of the Canary Islands who established the first municipal government in the Presidio San Antonio de Béjar. He will always be remembered as a loving and very generous person. He was self-educated, sharp minded and worked in the automobile business in Houston, Texas. He enjoyed working outdoors, loved animals and always had his faithful dog by his side. He was an avid follower of the baseball Houston Astros and the football Houston Texans. The family wishes to thank the doctors, nurses and staff of the Community Living Center of the V.A. Hospital in San Antonio. He valued their outstanding medical care and friendship. He was truly at home at the CLC with his fellow veterans.

Odilón was preceded in death by his parents and his siblings Eliseo and Santiago García, Helena Martínez, Leo de León and Blanca Garza. He is survived by his brothers and sisters Mary Sue Espinoza, Elizabeth Podesta, Sadie García, Martin de León, Dolores Beardsley, Henry Jr., Marino and Irene de León and many nieces and nephews.

A Rosary will be recited on Thursday, January 12, 2016, 8:45 a.m. at Sunset Funeral Home, 1701 Austin Highway, San Antonio, Texas 78218 with a procession to follow for a 10:15 a.m. graveside service at Fort Sam Houston National Cemetery.