Josefina Jimenez

February 25, 1962 – August 4, 2026

Josefina “Pina” Jiménez passed away at the age of 64 at Orange County Global Medical Center in Santa Ana, California, on August 4, 2026, at 6:58 p.m.

Pina was a good soul in the truest sense. She was warm, affectionate, caring, and generous. To Judy, Scotty, and Alejandro, she was Mom. To David, she was Grandma. To Rubén, she was his beloved wife and companion through 42 years of marriage.

Born Josefina Pelayo Martínez on February 25, 1962, in Concepción de Buenos Aires, Jalisco, México, she was the daughter of María del Rosario Martínez Alcalá and Gregorio Pelayo. Raised as an only child by her mother and grandmother, Pina spent her childhood and formative years in her hometown.

From a young age, Pina was diligent, studious, and intelligent. Before moving to California, she pursued nursing in Ciudad Guzmán, Jalisco, México. Caring for others came naturally to her, and she brought patience, reassurance, and compassion to people in moments of illness and vulnerability.

As a young woman, Pina left the only home she had known and moved to Santa Ana, California, carrying with her the hope of creating a better future—not only for herself, but for the family she dreamed of having one day.

In California, Pina met Rubén Jiménez Escobar, who became her best friend, her greatest supporter, and her beloved husband. Together, through hard work and sacrifice, they built a life and raised a family rooted in love, compassion, faith, and devotion to one another.

Pina made her home in California, but she never left Jalisco behind. She carried it with her—in her Catholic faith, in the traditions she preserved, and in the flavors she brought to her family’s table.

The compassion that first drew Pina to nursing remained with her throughout her life. Family and friends continued to rely on her in times of illness. She took them to medical appointments, helped them follow their treatment plans, and stayed beside them through illness and recovery. Her care was both practical and tender. It lived in the comfort she offered, the sacrifices she made, and the countless ways she placed the people she loved before herself. For Pina, love was not simply something you felt or said. It was something you did.

That same love found another expression in Pina’s kitchen. To be loved by Pina was often to be fed by her.

She prepared pozole, birria, lomo, tacos, cóctel de camarones, sopes, enchiladas, mole, and many other dishes for family and friends. When Pina cooked, familiar aromas filled the house and drew people toward the kitchen. She gave her time and care to every meal because feeding people was one of the ways she looked after them.

Pina understood that people could be hungry in more than one way. Food could fill the stomach, but something prepared with love could also comfort the heart and care for the soul. A warm plate placed before you meant that she had thought of you, made time for you, and wanted you to be well.

In every dish she prepared, Pina carried the flavors of her childhood in Jalisco and passed them on to her family. Her family will make those dishes again, but they will never be quite the same without her hands. They will miss how her food tasted, but even more, they will miss how it felt to be fed by her—the quiet certainty that someone was caring for you.

Pina’s generosity extended beyond her kitchen. She opened her home to family and friends and made people feel that there was room for them. Anyone who came through her door was welcomed, offered food, and made to feel part of the gathering.

Her home became a place where people could gather, eat, and feel included. Pina gave them more than a seat at her table. She gave them the feeling that they belonged there.

At Christmas, that warmth could be seen from the street.

Every year, Pina covered her house with so many Christmas lights that it brightened the neighborhood. Inside, gifts surrounded the Christmas trees, while the aromas of tamales and ponche filled the rooms. Her home was busy and full of life, and everyone was welcome.

Those who spent Christmas with Pina will remember more than the lights, gifts, and food. They will remember walking through her door and knowing that a place had been made for them. They will remember being surrounded by family, familiar aromas, and the happiness Pina created through all the work she put into the season.

The neighbors could see the lights, but those inside the house knew that its true warmth came from her. For her family, Christmas felt like Christmas because Pina made it so.

Beyond the meals, gatherings, and holidays were countless ordinary moments in which Pina’s love quietly held her family together. Her husband, children, and grandson will carry those moments with them always.

Her Catholic faith was important to her, not only in what she believed but in how she lived. It could be seen in the way she served others, shared what she had, welcomed people into her home, and made caring for her family part of her everyday life.

Pina is survived by her beloved husband of 42 years, Rubén Jiménez Escobar; her children, Judy Cervantes, Scotty Escobar, and Alejandro “Alex” Jiménez; and her grandson, David Alexander Cervantes. She is also survived by her aunt, María Guadalupe Herrera; her eight cousins and their families; and many other relatives and friends whose lives were made better by knowing her.

She was preceded in death by her mother, María del Rosario Martínez Alcalá, and her father, Gregorio Pelayo.

Pina’s absence will be felt in the places where her love lived every day: in the kitchen, around the family table, at the open door, and beneath the Christmas lights. Her family will miss her voice, her affection, her cooking, and the comfort of simply knowing she was there.

But those same places will also keep her memory close.

Her family will find her in a pot of pozole simmering on the stove, in the aroma of tamales and ponche at Christmas, in the lights shining against the December night, and in every place set at the table for someone who needs to feel welcome.

Pina taught her family that love has hands. It takes someone to an appointment, stays beside them through illness, cooks for them, opens the door, wraps the gifts, hangs lights in the darkness, and makes room for one more person at the table.

As her family, we will carry that love forward. We will care for one another in times of need, prepare the dishes she made with such love, preserve her traditions, and open our homes as she opened hers. In these ways, her love will continue through us.

We will miss Pina for the rest of our lives, and we will love her for just as long.

A funeral service honoring Pina’s life will be held on August 13, 2026, at 2:30 p.m. at Fairhaven Memorial Park & Mortuary, 1702 Fairhaven Ave., Santa Ana, CA 92705. All whose lives were touched by Pina are invited to join her family in remembering and honoring her life.