Pete Gil

Pete Gil, born February 26, 1929, in Austin, passed away peacefully on May 3, 2021. He was preceded in death by his parents, Jose Gil and Theresa Rodriguez Gil; his brothers, Paul Gil, Narcisco Gil, Simon Gil and Otis Gil; his sisters, Ruth Gil, Sally Sanchez, and Julia Gil; his second wife, Frances Smith Guerrero Gil; his third wife, Frances Rocha; and his youngest daughter, Elizabeth Chavera.

Pete is survived by his oldest daughter, Vickie Johns and her husband, Glen; his son, Michael Gil; his grandchildren, Beth Shields and her husband Jeff; Matthew Johns and his wife Chelsea; Zachary Gil and Hannah Gil; his great-grandchildren, Dylan Weum and Skylar Weum; Alden Johns and Emilia Johns. Pete is also survived by many nieces, nephews and cousins in his large extended family that he loved dearly.

Pete was the youngest of five brothers and three sisters. His parents passed when he was a very young boy. All of the family worked hard and took care of each other. He began working at an early age. This included some migrant work. He thought harvesting sugar beets was the hardest work. As a young teen, Pete became a lifeguard at Zaragoza Park. He also began boxing training under the tutelage of Louis Munoz. Pete set a goal of being a Golden Gloves champion. He also met a beautiful, young girl at Zaragoza Park. He set another goal, to make their relationship lasting. Pete won the Golden Gloves welter weight title in Ft. Worth on February 14, 1949. He was 19 years old. About two years later, he married that young girl, Lupe Herrera.

Pete boxed professionally for a few years, rather successfully. But after starting a family, he joined his brothers in the Gil Construction Company. He was a talented bricklayer and stone mason. In the early 1960’s, his National Guard unit, the 49th Armored Division, was called up and he was stationed at Ft. Richardson in Anchorage, Alaska. His marriage did not survive this change. This was a very difficult time, but Pete came through it. He remarried a remarkable, accomplished, high energy woman, Frances Smith Guerrero. They had a 33 year marriage that was loving, interesting, and supportive. They made many good friends at Ft. Richardson and later at Ft. Leavenworth, Kansas. Frances was a gourmet cook and they entertained often. They both loved to talk and to laugh and enjoy life. When Pete became eligible to retire from the military, they were ready to come home to Austin, to family and friends and live in their house on Woodview.

Pete enrolled at Austin Community College and earned his Criminal Justice Associate Degree. Pete started his next career as a Travis County Deputy Sheriff. The next years were very good. They had their family near. There were some great Gil family reunions at Richard Moya Park. Later, Frances’ health began to decline and when Pete became eligible to retire, he did. He stayed by Frances’ side. After a couple of years, Frances passed.

Some time went by and Pete met a lovely widow at the Austin Senior Activity Center, Frances Rocha. It was a sweet pairing. They met at the perfect time in each other’s lives. Pete and Frances enjoyed a serene, happy life. They were regulars at Amaya’s, their favorite restaurant. They took senior bus tours to the Coushatta Casino with Pete’s niece, Theresa and her husband. Pete had a beautiful relationship with Frances’ son, Ben Rocha and his wife, Irene and with Frances’ daughter, Maria and her husband, Mario. After about 17 years, Frances’ health rapidly declined and she passed.

At age 89, Pete and his son, Michael, a retired nurse, began to live together. Michael became Pete’s full-time caregiver, cook, companion, and partner in outings to get a meal or maybe a beer, and he was a loving son. After almost two and a half years, Pete who had always been strong and vigorous, began to rapidly decline. Maybe it was more of a winding down. There was a short stay at a hospital, a transition to skilled nursing and long term care then hospice care. Two months and seven days after his 92nd birthday, Pete transitioned one last time. His daughter, Vickie was with him that last hour.

The family would like to thank the doctors Pete saw over his lifespan. He had some health issues over the years, but always continued on. We send a special thank you to Dr. Steve Hardeman, who provided great care the last years of his life. We would like to thank the nurses and staff at New Hope Manor in Cedar Park. They gave him excellent care and also kindness. They shared laughter and smiles with him. Thank you to the staff at New Century Hospice.

Services for Pete will be Tuesday, May 11th at Cook-Walden Funeral Home, 6100 North Lamar Boulevard. There will be a viewing between 4:00 PM and 6:00 PM. A rosary will begin at 6:00 PM followed by family and friends sharing testimonials.

To leave condolences for the family, please visit http://www.cookwaldenfuneralhome.com