Our beloved father (Antonio Gomez) passed away on Wednesday, August 12, 2026 at the age of 86. Antonio was a long-time resident of San Jose. He worked in the fields picking fruits and vegetables before ultimately retiring from the construction industry. He enjoyed going for walks, fixing things around the house and reading his Bible. He was a beloved father, grandfather, great-grandfather, great-great-grandfather, brother and uncle. He was born in Las Pilas Zacatecas, Mexico to Rafael Gomez Sigala and Emerejilda Avelar Garcia on April 13, 1940. Antonio leaves behind his wife of 66 years Olivia Gomez, sons Ramon Gomez (Nicolasa Serna), Israel Gomez (Lourdes Gomez), Martin Gomez (deceased), Rafael Gomez (Donisia Gomez), Juan Gomez (Corina Cavazos), Edgar Gomez (Angela Gomez), Gamaliel Gomez (Leticia Gomez) and daughter Bertha Peña(Salvador Peña). He also leaves behind 28 grandchildren, 47 great-grandchildren, one great-great-grandchild, two sisters (Refugia Duran and Juanita Jauregue), three brothers (Ricardo Gomez, Jesus Gomez and Raudel Gomez) and numerous nieces, nephews and cousins.
His faith was an important part of his life and he remained committed to attending church and being part of the community. He was devoted to his church (First Apostolic Church of San Jose), where he and his wife would attend every Sunday service. They would sit through both the English and the Spanish service and would also attend services throughout the week.
Antonio had a humorous side to him. He would take toys, dolls, or stuffed animals from his grandkids and hide them just so he could get a good laugh out of them. It wasn’t until the grandkids told grandma what he did and she would go over, take the toys back from him and give it back to the kids. Antonio would be just sitting there laughing the entire time. That was just Antonio, he loved joking around and getting a good laugh.
He also enjoyed watching and supporting the local professional sports teams on television, with a 2-liter of Diet Coke by his side. He especially liked watching baseball and would pay attention to how the Latino ballplayers performed. It didn’t matter if they looked Caucasian, if they had a Latino last name, he would say they were Latino. He enjoyed following the players and was always quick to point them out, proudly claiming them as one of our own.
