Juanita Villanueva Sanchez

Juanita was born Juana Ayala Villanueva on June 16, 1938, in Monterrey, Nuevo Leon, Mexico, to Celestino and Eva Villanueva. She was the first born of 12 children and grew up in a close family raised with love, hard work, and a devotion to God. She was raised in Monterrey as a young child, where she was an excellent student and enjoyed school and her teachers. She also enjoyed spending time with her Tia Petrita and Tio Basilio, who always treated her like their own child. From her Tia and her Mom, Juanita learned to sew and crochet at a young age; something she would love to do her entire life. She would make kids' clothes, and dresses and pillows for weddings and quinceañeras. Juanita would sell some of her work, but more often her work was a labor of love and was gifted. Around the age of 11, her family began to migrate for work. She told stories of working in Texas, New Mexico, Ohio, and Washington. She admitted to not being very good at it, and would get help from her younger brother Alfonso, and from another young man. That other young man was Librado Aparicio, and they would marry in 1954, when Juanita was 16 years old. They would settle in Sunnyside, WA, and have three children; Fernando, Sylvia and Eduardo Aparicio (Fred, Sylvia and Eddy). When her youngest child was less than a year old, and she just 19, her husband tragically died in a car accident. In the next few years she would raise her children with the help of her family, and in 1961, at the age of 23, she would meet and marry Luis Sanchez. They settled in their home in Wapato, WA, and added two more children to their family; Marisela and Raul Sanchez (Chelly and Rudy). They would be married for 37 years until Luis' death in 1998. Together they were dedicated to their family; especially their special needs daughter Chelly, and to their church in Wapato, St. Peter Claver Catholic Church. They spent many years volunteering and making friends at the church. They spent many years helping with the church festival when it was held at the city park, and helped to take the queens around to different parades representing the Parish. Juanita also spent many years teaching catechism classes with her good friend Maria Gonzalez. She always did her best to be a good role model, and along with Luis, were padrinos to many children and couples. It was her faith in God, and her strong belief in prayer that helped her continue after the loss of her two husbands, and the deaths of three of her children; Sylvia, Ed, and Marisela. We always pray that no parent should have to bury any of their children. After Luis had died, she continued living in their same home for many years in Wapato, before moving in with her brother and sister-in-law, Tomas and Hortencia Villanueva. She was very thankful to be invited into their home. The last few years of her life, she needed nursing care. We suggested assisted living, but she wanted to remain in Wapato, so her friends wouldn't have to drive so far to visit her, so she moved into Emerald Care. Many friends and relatives continued to visit her and include her in activities. She still enjoyed going to church and breakfast every Sunday, and she enjoyed going to birthday parties and baby showers on Saturdays. During the week, she would get many visitors for lunch or simply to talk for a while. She had many dear friends, family and Emerald Care staff, that showed her many great kindnesses. She will be prayed for and missed by many. She was preceded in death by husbands Librado Aparicio and Luis Sanchez; children Sylvia Tello, Ed Aparicio and Marisela Sanchez; Parents Celestino and Eva Villanueva; and brothers Celestino Jr. and Tomas Villanueva. She is survived by brothers and sisters Alfonso (Irene) Villanueva, (Hortencia) Villanueva, Genobeva (Andres) Jimenez, Jose (Martina) Villanueva, Juan Villanueva, Alex (Griselda) Villanueva, Ralph Villanueva, Leticia (Dan) Zyph; grandchildren Christina and Anthony (Veronica) Aparicio, Mike (Anita) Mata, Manuel (Deidre) and Brenda Tello, Gabriel, Andres, Alejandro, Carlos and Ricardo Aparicio, Gabriela and Noah Sanchez; and great grandchildren; Mirabel Aparicio, Christian and Camryn Mata, Elise, Kiran, Kenji, Solei and Noemi Tello, and Mario and Talisa Raudales. A visitation will be available at St. Peter Claver Church on Wednesday at 5:00pm with a rosary commencing at 6:00pm. A full burial mass will be offered on Thursday, January 5th at 11:00am at St. Peter Claver Catholic Church in Wapato. Burial to ensue at Zillah Community Cemetery with a reception at the Zillah Community Center immediately thereafter.

Arrangements under the direction of Merritt Funeral Home, Wapato, WA.