Candelario S. Gonzales Jr. was an American born abroad on September 28, 1948 in Reynosa, Mexico. His parents were Candelario C. Gonzalez and Adelina (Sauceda) Gonzales. They quickly settled in Houston, Texas where Candy was raised.
Candy was raised with two sisters and eight brothers. He had sisters Rita and Blasa and brothers Nicholas, Jose Angel, Vicente, Brijito, Antonio, Jose "Pep", Andres, and Jesse.
As a young child, Candy showed his athleticism through baseball. Although he couldn’t play anymore; His passion for the sport continued throughout his life with his lifelong love for his favorite team, the Houston Astros. His favorite ball player was number 27, Jose Altuve which he affectionally nicknamed “sparkplug”.
Candy was blessed with two daughters Monica and Candice, three biological sons, Michael, Vincente, Alexander and an honorary son, Jason. He was also blessed with three granddaughters, six grandsons, and four honorary grandsons, Christian, Jaslene, Arianna, Michael, Israel, Vincente, Noah, Robert, Gabriel, Christopher, Carlos, Ethan, and Thomas.
His primary occupation was Master Tile and Marble Layer. He was brought into the trade by his brothers, quickly learned from them and became a master at creating beautiful kitchens, bathrooms, living rooms, and bedrooms for countless homes. He was self-employed for over fifty years.
Candy enjoyed his leisure time by taking part in various hobbies. His favorite pursuits were deer hunting (and not bringing home anything). Fishing (and not catching anything), driving to his sons' houses to visit and attempting to barbecue (he always burned the meat!). He was content to enjoy his hobbies alone (and not listening to Delia when the meat was ready to get out of the barbecue pit!) but was also willing to share his interests with others.
Travelling were experiences that Candy truly enjoyed when he had the rare chance. He preferred to seek out vacations that were casual and laid back. He really liked to share a beer with his friends and family. His favorite vacations included visiting and camping on the Indian Reservations around Texas, and a trip to Sea World.
Candy wasn’t a lover of animals at first, but over time he quickly became an animal lover during his golden years. One of Candy’s favorites is the ugliest thing ever, Peppermint, a Shih Tzu. They were best friends for a little over three years. His family was rounded out by his cat Jabba and two dogs, Peanut and Hershey.
Candy passed away peacefully on August 21, 2021 at Methodist Hospital in Medical Center surrounded by loved ones. He had a laundry list of problems, but the main thing was Congestive Heart Failure, and Kidney Failure.
He is survived by his wife Delia, his children Michael, Vincente, Jason, Monica, Alex, Candice, his grandchildren Christian, Michael, Israel, Vincente, Noah, Arianna, Robert, Gabriel, Jaslene, Christopher, Carlos, Ethan, Thomas, his brother Nicholas and sister Rita.
He was preceded in death by father Candelario C. Gonzalez, mother Adelina (Sauceda) Gonzales, sister Blasa (Gonzales) Peña, and brothers Jose Angel, Vicente, Brijito, Antonio, Jose "Pep", Andres, and Jesse.
A memorial gathering will be held at Funeraria Del Angel Crespo Navigation located at 2516 Navigation Blvd Houston, TX 77003. Visitation will be from 5:00PM to 9:00PM with service starting at 7:00PM.
We encourage online viewing of service via facebook live due to COVID cases being on the rise. No one will be turned away, but visitation will require masking. We do this because we care about our loved ones and Candy wouldn't want you to get sick over him.
Candy will be cremated and will wait to join his lovely wife to be spread together in a location later to be decided on.
-written by Alexander Gonzales
