Jose Ignacio Gutierrez

Our beloved father, Jose Ignacio Gutierrez, was called by our Heavenly Father on Thursday, September 16, 2021. He was born on September 25, 1940 in Rio Grande City, TX and at the age of 17 moved to Austin, to attend the University of Texas. He earned an advanced degree in Pharmacy and made Austin his permanent home. Jose was the third of six children and the only son of Ignacio Gutierrez and Ignacia G. Gutierrez. Jose married his college sweetheart, Esther Edith Diaz de Leon on May 5, 1962. They were happily married for 59 years and together had six children. Jose spent a few years working at Sommer’s Pharmacy and in 1970 opened his own pharmacy, Neighborhood Pharmacy, located on East 7th St. in Austin, TX. The pharmacy was his true passion. He was dedicated to his customers and was much-loved by the east Austin community for his kindness, honesty, and generosity. He never turned a person away whether they could afford their medications or not. His customers loved to go in and chat with Jose and enjoyed his humorous stories. Jose loved to work and he would spend tireless hours at his pharmacy, often working over 12 hours a day. Jose retired and closed Neighborhood Pharmacy on August 31, 2020, after 49 years of service to his community.

Jose also had a love for ranching and cattle. He would head out to his two ranches, after a full day at the pharmacy and on weekends to feed and check in on the cattle. He would mend fences, vaccinate the cows, and round up cattle for auction. The man was nonstop. He was energized by purposeful work.

Jose was also a very intelligent man with a playful and witty sense of humor. He could solve complicated math problems in his head and he had a keen eye for choosing good real estate investments. He was a fantastic story teller, loved the company of others, getting to know new people, and going dancing with Esther. For fun, Jose and Esther would spend Saturday afternoons taking long drives with no specific destination, never failing to pick up one of DQ’s assorted ice cream treats, especially Jose’s favorite, the Oreo Blizzard.

Jose was preceded in death by his grandmother, Manuela S. Guerra, his parents, Ignacio Gutierrez and Ignacia G. Gutierrez, his two sisters, Maria Minerva Guerra and Maria Cecilia G. Martinez and brothers in law, Ramiro Narro, Ignacio Guerra Jr., and Bill D. Pope Sr.

He is survived by his wife, Esther Edith Diaz de Leon Gutierrez, sisters, Maria Celeste Narro, Maria Rosario Pope, and Maria Iris Trevino and brothers in law Edmundo Martinez and Ernesto Trevino, and his six children Yvette Marie Gutierrez-Schieffer (Michael A. Schieffer), Sonia Edith Gutierrez (Robert Chipman), Tania Gutierrez Huth (John Michael Huth), Jose Ignacio Gutierrez Jr., Ruth Esther Gutierrez (Alfredo Felipe Linz), and Javier Josue Gutierrez (Lindsey Reed), and his eight grandchildren, Kalyn, Sydney, and Daniel Schieffer, Emily and Nicholas Huth, Joseph and Olivia Gutierrez, and Elio Linz-Gutierrez.

Jose will be deeply missed by his family, friends, and the community.

In lieu of flowers donations may be made to the Alzheimer’s Association (alz.org).

In order to watch the live streamed funeral services, please follow the link below for Sacred Heart Catholic Church:

https://sacredheartchurchaustin.org/