Obituary of Deacon Jose Ricardo Castro

DEACON JOSE RICARDO CASTRO John 14:6 “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” Deacon Jose R. Castro Sr. entered eternal rest on July 19,2022 at the age of 98. He was born on February 15, 1924 in San Ciro, SLP, Mexico. He enjoyed sharing jokes and telling stories of his boyhood years in San Luis. He told of spending days behind a horse drawn, wooden plow planting seeds for the family’s corn crop and riding his horse to take corn to be ground each morning. At a very young age, he was often asked to ride alone to take his grandparents supplies, and sometimes he had to spend the night outdoors as he traveled to their home. He came to the U.S. at the age of 24 and met the love of his life, Maria Guadalupe, while they both worked at the Schuster Farms in Donna. They married in 1949 and later moved to Pharr where they raised nine children. Jose was a carpenter by trade and passed on his skills to all his sons, but serving God was his true calling and his passion. He became a deacon on May 5, 1985 and served his community for 18 years before retiring on May 31, 2003. After his retirement, he continued to serve his church community into his early nineties by presiding at weddings and funerals, taking Communion to the elderly, and delivering food to St. Vincent de Paul for distribution to the needy. We hope that you will remember him when you donate to St. Vincent. Jose was preceded in death by his wife Maria Guadalupe Castro, daughter Virginia Castro Bernal, and two sisters, Trinidad and Leonor. He is survived by daughters Maria Guadalupe (Robert) Robles, Leticia (+John) Rutosky, Maria de los Angeles Ramirez, Connie (Juan) Garza, and sons Ricardo (Diana) Castro Jr., Alejandro (Blanca) Castro, Fernando (Delia) Castro, and Antonio (Aida) Castro, twenty grandchildren, and numerous great grandchildren. He is also survived by a brother Bonifacio, and sisters Amanda, Anita, Dolores, and Isabel. We wish to thank Father Paul Roman for his many visits, prayers, and Communion for dad, and the members of St. Vincent for their visits, prayers, and food they brought to him. We also wish to thank Opus Care for the care and attention they gave our dad during his final months. We are also very grateful to his brother Boni for coming to stay with him in his final days. He and dad enjoyed their time together and we thank him for his loving care. Visitation will be held from 6p.m. to 9p.m. on Monday, July 25, 2022 at St. Anne, Mother of Mary Catholic Church, 710 E. Lucas, Pharr with a 7p.m. rosary. Funeral mass will be held on Tuesday, July 26, 2022 at 12:00 p.m. at St. Anne, Mother of Mary Catholic Church with burial at 1:00 p.m. at Valley Memorial Gardens, 3605 N. Taylor Rd., Mission, Tx. Funeral arrangements are entrusted to the care of Legacy Chapels, 4610S. Jackson Rd., Edinburg, TX.