Gloria was born in Laredo Texas to Tomas and Corina Villarreal. She devoted her life’s work to education as a teacher and as a mentor for other teachers, students and administrators. She attended and graduated from North Texas State College for Women in Denton, Texas with a Master of Art in Literature.
She taught all ages of students from high school to kindergarten. She taught in Rio Grande City at the start of her career where she met and married Eleazar Garza. She went on to teach in McAllen - Home Economics and English. Her son, Ruben, was one of her English students. After Eleazar was transferred to Austin, Texas in 1976. She taught kindergarten in the Austin school district. She later applied and worked for the Texas Education Agency as a bilingual consultant.
After she retired from state service Gloria joined her son, Ruben, running retirement centers: LaVista, Sunrise Village, and Autumn Springs. She retired after six years of helping with the retirement centers.
Gloria was a very loving daughter, wife, mother, and grandmother who always thought about her family’s welfare. She cared deeply about her family and her friends.
Gloria will always be remembered for the wonderful hugs she gave that included her love and a piece of her heart. She had a great laugh and a wonderful singing voice though she did not sing often. Gloria loved to sit quietly out on the porch at the house on Maple Street in McAllen with her daughter Grace. The quiet conversations about life in general will be fondly remembers.
She was a role model of what a true southern lady should look like. She loved having guest in her house for celebrations, BBQs, and always treated each guest with hospitality.
She joins Tomas Villarreal, her father, Corina Moreno Villarreal, her mother, Ramiro Villarreal, her brother, Alicia Serna, her sister, Eleazar Garza, her husband, and Jose Alfredo Garza, her son in heaven.
She leaves behind Diana Maria (daughter) and David Negrete, Maria Graciela (daughter) and Wallace A Pratt Jr. Ruben Eleazar Garza (son) and Thomas Ricardo (son) and Maritza Garza. She also leaves behind ten grandchildren: Tomas (grandson) and Adelia Pratt, Timothy Pratt (grandson), Terra (granddaughter) and David West, Taylor (granddaughter) and Scott Myer, Christian Pratt (grandson), Kathryn Garza (granddaughter), Hylaree (granddaughter) and Trevor Deas, Diego (grandson) and Jerry Lynn Negrete, Claudia Negrete (granddaughter) and Sergio and Jillian Negrete (grandson).
She was also very proud of her great-grandchildren: Aeben, Allyah, Aikia, Josh, Ryan, Chloe, and Lorenzo.
She is survived by Berta Sandoval (sister), Veronica (sister), and Bill Couznyse. She also had a very large extended family of nieces, nephews, cousins and friends.
In lieu of flowers please help us honor her life ‘s work with a donation to the San Marcos Area Retired Teachers and Staff Association, 4015 Hamilton Hollow, San Marcos, TX 78666. Please specify that the donation be for the scholarship fund, as she would have like to know that she was helping young minds to further their education.
