Shirley Ann Garza's Obituary
Shirley Ann Garza, aged 87, died on March 4, 2016. Shirley was born in Fort Worth, TX. She grew up in El Paso, TX, where she met and married her high-school sweetheart, Edward, in 1947. They were married for 60 years, until his death.
In her 20s, Shirley worked as a switchboard operator for Bell Telephone, but left the phones after the birth of her first daughter. She later started and ran her own successful business, World 800, after the youngest of her five daughters entered college. She retired from this business in 2006.
Before retiring to Tucson, Shirley lived in Lafayette, CA, for over 30 years. Earlier, the Garzas also lived in New Rochelle, NY; Mexico City; and Monterrey, Mexico. She maintained many close friendships with people from all of those places throughout her lifetime. Everyone who knew her, even casually, experienced her love, compassion, and generosity of spirit. Her love for others was also expressed by generous years of volunteer work. She served in a variety of ways, including many years of volunteer work for Casa de la Luz Hospice in Tucson and Meals on Wheels in Lafayette, CA. Shirley was a life-long member of the Seventh Day Adventist Church, and served as deacon and elder of the Pleasant Hill, CA branch for many years. She was also a beloved Sabbath School teacher there.
She is survived by her children: Nona and Michael Rekasis of Pulaski, TN; Cindy Garza of Tucson, AZ; Tina and Jim Leiterman of Thousand Oaks, CA; Sandy and Roy Yared, of Napa, CA; and Susan Berg, of Pleasanton, CA. Shirley will be deeply missed by her grandchildren, Roy and Ryan Yared, and Mandy, Christopher, Kathleen, Eric, Erin, Tricia, Nick, and Nigel Leiterman; as well as a beloved great-granddaughter, Sophia. She is also survived by her sisters, Betty Fogg, Pauline Woodhouse, and Peggy Hopper, all of Pulaski, TN, as well as her nieces, Betty McCann and Rosie Greathouse, and her nephews, James and William McCoy.
Services were held on March 10 at Evergreen Cemetery in Tucson, with Pastor Malcolm Douglas of Midvale Seventh Day Adventist Church officiating. In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations to Casa de la Luz Hospice (https://casahospice.com/) of Tucson, AZ.
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