Jesus G. Saldivar

Jesus Saldivar was born on May 4, 1926, to Geronimo and Maria Bernabe Saldivar in Santa Ana, California. Fleeing the Mexican Revolution, Jesus’s parents, grandparents, and eldest sister left Zacatecas, Mexico in 1917 and settled in Santa Ana’s Logan Barrio, where his family resided for six years. The Saldivar family was relocated to Mexico in 1932 as part of the Mexican Repatriation that took place during the Great Depression.

Once back in Mexico, the Saldivar family settled in the Mexican state of Durango, where Jesus eventually met and married his wife Andrea in 1948. Jesus returned to Orange County, California with wife Andrea and daughter Martha. Jesus soon found employment with ranch owner Henry J. Seba. Jesus continued his work in the outdoors and eventually retired in 1985 as a backhole operator tending to Orange County’s many cemeteries.

Jesus loved spending time with his family, enjoyed listening to Ranchero and Norteño style music, and was passionate about America’s pastime – baseball. Jesus became an instant fan of the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1955 when they won the World Series against the New York Yankees. He rarely missed an opportunity to hear Jaime Jarrin’s play-by-plays on the radio after they relocated to Los Angeles.

Jesus is survived by his wife, Andrea Saldivar; his children Martha, Arturo and wife Arabela, Teresa, Patricia, and Armando Diaz; as well as his two grandchildren; five great-grandchildren; and three sisters, Lupe Carillo, Margarita Castaneda, and Carmen Olivos. He is predeceased by grandson Vincent Saldivar.