Jesse Herrera Alvarez Sr.

Surrounded by his loving family, Jesse Herrera Alvarez, the patriarch of five generations, passed away at home on July 8, 2017 – about a month shy of his 100th birthday.Born on Aug. 6, 1917 in Rockdale, Texas, a small town northeast of Austin, Jesse was the youngest of five siblings and the only son born to Pauline Herrera, of Bastrop, Texas, and Juan Alvarez, of San Luis Potosi, Mexico.He is preceded in death by his daughter, Pauline Alvarez, his wife, Rachel Gonzales Alvarez, and his grandsons Jesse H. Alvarez III and Cresencio Cantu, Jr.Jesse is survived by his children: Raymond G. Alvarez,

Mary Alvarez Sandoval , Pauline Alvarez Cantu, Jesse H. Alvarez, Jr., Johnny G. Alvarez, Christine Alvarez Villa; his 13 grandchildren, 37 great-grandchildren, 22 great-great grandchildren. Jesse came of age during the Great Depression and left school after he completed the 7th grade in 1930 before he was sent to work harvesting crops in the fields. For seven months, Jesse served in the United States Army. At the age of 27, he was drafted during World War II. He completed his basic training at Camp Roberts in California. Jesse was in Arizona when he was in the process of being deployed to the Pacific to fight the Japanese in the summer of 1945. The two atomic bombs were dropped within a week of each other in Hiroshima and Nagasaki and hostilities ended soon thereafter, negating the need for Jesse’s unit to be deployed ahead of the invasion of Japan.After his brief stint in the military, Jesse worked at the Baker Hotel and the Adolphus Hotel in downtown Dallas.He went on to work at Mobil Oil in the Magnolia Building in downtown Dallas as an elevator operator. During his 33 years of employment for the company now known as Exxon Mobil, he also worked in the mail room and as a building maintenance technician. He was honored at a retirement celebration in 1982.His golden years were spent loving and welcoming three generations of grandchildren. He also spent many days tinkering around his house, including working on projects he created and others that he fixed. If you stopped by to visit him, you might be treated to a special rendition of one of his favorite songs -- and you certainly would be asked why you had to leave so soon.Visitation is scheduled from 5 to 9 p.m. Thursday at Calvary Hill Funeral Home Chapel, 3235 Lombardy Lane in Dallas. Jesse’s funeral will be held 10 a.m. Friday at the funeral home. Burial will follow a graveside service at Calvary Hill Cemetery. Arrangements under the direction of Calvary Hill Funeral Home, Dallas, TX.