Martha Elena Bracamonte

It is with profoundly broken hearts and shattered spirits that we announce the passing of our beloved mother and most cherished matriarch, Martha Elena Bracamonte. Surrounded by her devoted and loving children who never left her side, MOM took her last breath on this Earth and went on to be with Our Dear Lord in Heaven on Thursday, June 25th, 2026, at 9:36 pm at the age of 86, while admitted at University Medical Center North Campus in Tucson, Arizona. She passed away while seeking treatment, to no avail, for several medical ailments.

Our MOTHER was born on May 11th, 1940, in Nogales, Sonora, Mexico to Aurora Banderas de Valdez and Angel Valdez Abril (both deceased). MOM was the proud granddaughter of Rosario Lugo de Banderas and Mexican Revolutionary War General Juan Manuel Banderas Araiza aka: “El Agachado” (both deceased), and the equally proud granddaughter of Josefa Abril de Valdez and Miguel Valdez.

While growing up on Calle Celaya 24 Interior y 56 in Nogales, Sonora, Mexico, MOM attended grade school at Vicenta O’Carranza from Kindergarten to Sixth Grade. Due to familial obligations and her role as the eldest sibling, MOM selflessly helped care for and raise her brothers and sisters while her parents operated their family business, a Mexican restaurant called El Cafe Mambo, where Mom also worked occasionally. MOM carried fond memories and shared great stories about her childhood spent with her brothers, Angel “Quito” Valdez (Myrna deceased), Henry “Piteco” Valdez (deceased, Marty), Sergio “Cacho” Valdez (deceased, Norma), Tony Valdez (deceased), and her sisters Matilda Aguilar (deceased, Pete) and Josie Eulen.

In her youth, MOM worked at La Victoria’s Surplus, Conchita and Pedro’s storefronts, and as a barista and coffee toaster at Hotel Olivia. It was during her adolescent years while working as a cashier at Hotel Frey Marco de Niza that she met Manuel Jesus Bracamonte (deceased), our father, whom she went on to marry on August 5th, 1957, residing in Nogales, Sonora, before eventually moving to settle in Tucson, Arizona. Together they shared twenty-eight years of marriage, and bore six children, subsequently divorcing later in life.

MOM’s absolute pride and joy were her six children. She was the ferocious and unwavering protector of Patricia “Pat” Bracamonte, Manuel “Manny” Bracamonte Jr. (deceased, Norma), Eduardo “Chapo” Bracamonte (Susie), Miguel Angel “Mike” Bracamonte (deceased), Yolanda “Yolie” Cordova (Jaime (deceased) and Martha “Marti” Bracamonte Casorla (Muhamed “Mo”). MOM loved each of her children in her own unique way. It was widely known by all that you didn’t dare mess with her children.

MOM built her life around caring, protecting, and providing for her family and countless others. Her kitchen and doors were always open, making her home on S. Lundy Drive a true sanctuary of love where anyone seeking food, solace, companionship, or comfort was warmly welcomed.

For fifteen years, MOM worked as a child day care provider with the Department of Economic Security. Her kindness and compassion touched the lives of so many children, many of whom to present date continually sought out their Nana Martha well into their adulthood for visits and phone calls -a true testament of admiration and undeniable impact.

MOM provided for her family and loved ones through her masterful culinary skills and personal home entrepreneurship. MOM was an excellent cook; she took immense pleasure in preparing large, daily meals, ensuring that, rain or shine, a warm, delicious plate of food was always available to everyone. We, her family, were incredibly blessed with all her bountiful meals made with love. We even appreciated her big pots -ollas of Cocido, Posole, or Menudo that she would make in the scorching hot Tucson summer months. MOM was renowned for her spectacular homemade flour tortillas, which she gifted and sold, affectionately earning her title of “NANA TORTILLA.” MOM’S red chile tamales and sopitas were equally fantastic. MOM’S culinary skills were definitely a blessing. As her daughters, we will continue to uphold and honor her incredible legacy by replicating and keeping her personal and traditional household recipes alive.

Like MOM’S favorite patron saint, La Virgen de Guadalupe, MOM was a natural protector and provider. I see other commonalities that perhaps may or may not be coincidences, based on MOM always putting others before her own personal needs. MOM’S unyielding selflessness is a mere reflection of her love and devotion to her family. Again, a true testament to her person, and perhaps for whom she was always meant to be from day one, starting from MOM’S birthdate on May 11th, to the Virgin de Guadalupe being MOM’s patron saint, to her caring for her siblings early on, and ultimately providing for her family and being the ultimate mother to us.

As aforementioned, MOM'S birthday is May 11th. Therefore, born on May 11th, MOM’s birthday frequently coincided with Mexican Mother’s Day (Dia de las Madres, May 10) and American Mother’s Day leading to beautiful family celebrations during the month of May that the Catholic Church dedicates to the Virgin de Guadalupe.

MOM was a woman of deep, abiding Catholic faith. Every morning, alongside her coffee and medication, MOM faithfully read her morning prayers. Carrying her prayer booklets constantly in her hands or her black purse, she selflessly prayed for the safety, health, and well-being of her entire family; especially her ten beloved grandchildren: Katrina Ann Salazar, Steven Andrew Bracamonte (Carmen), Eduardo Servando “Eddie” Bracamonte, Joey Bracamonte, Michael Andre Bracamonte, Omar Alexander Cordova (Ariana), Adrian Alexander Cordova (Brianna), Adrianna Nicole Bracamonte, Jacob Manuel Bracamonte (Angelica), and Muhamed Giovanni “Lil Mo” Casorla; and her twelve precious great-grandchildren: Andreya Michaela Bracamonte, Eduardo Santiago “Eddie” Bracamonte III, Nevaeh Elena Bracamonte, Oscar Julian Riesgo, Juliana Jalise Riesgo, Joey Bracamonte Jr., Analisa Bracamonte, Santino Bracamonte, Dominic Rene Pallanes, Steven “SJ” Bracamonte Jr., Eliana Isabella Cordova, and Cruz James Alexander Cordova.

Following a minor stroke in the fall of 2023 and a major stroke on April 2, 2024, life slowed down for Mom. She spent the final three years of her life living with her youngest daughter, Martha “Marti” Bracamonte Casorla, and son-in-law Mo Casorla, surrounded by family, and cared for with the same infinite, reciprocal love she had given to everyone else throughout her entire life.

MOM, we love you and will miss you profusely. Know that we will always honor your wishes by remaining a close-knit and loving family—the same way we have always been. We will honor you by carrying on your legacy and ensuring we continue to cherish and value all familial traditions in which you were the integral primary link in bridging ancestral and traditional customs for our family.

AMA, descansa tu alma, descansa tu cuerpo y descansa en paz. Viejita, aunque estemos demasiados deprimidos y destrozados, la única consolación es saber que nunca más vas a tener que sufrir ningún dolor o problemas médicos. Estamos agradecidos por ti y por tenerte como nuestra MADRE. Fuiste lo máximo para nosotros, Nuestra Reina. Que Nuestro Señor Jesucristo y nuestra Virgencita te cuiden y te acompañen todos los días hasta que tengamos la oportunidad de reunirnos. Vaya con Dios, Torita. Te Amamos, Ama.

*Friends and family are warmly invited to share their photographs and written memories of Martha on her Celebration of Life website:

Nanamarthaevb.netlify.app

A visitation will be held at East Lawn Palms Mortuary, 5801 East Grant Road, Tucson, AZ 85712, US, on July 10, 2026, from 4:00 pm to 11:00 pm.

A funeral service will take place at St. Augustine Cathedral, 192 S Stone Ave, Tucson, AZ 85701, US, on July 11, 2026, from 10:00 am to 11:00 am.

A committal service will follow at South Lawn Cemetery, 5401 S Park Ave, Tucson, AZ 85706, US, on July 11, 2026, from 11:30 am to 12:30 pm.