Esteban Catolico was born on November 11, 1911 to Eulalio and Petra Catolico in the small fishing town of Pantoc, Narvacan, Ilocos Sur, Philippines. He was the third child of a total of eight siblings. His siblings are Segundo, Mariano, Magdalena, Jose, Benjamin, Simeon and Ernesto. At only 17 years of age, he went to Manila Bay and boarded a steamship that arrived in Seattle, Washington a few weeks later, eventually making his way down to San Francisco. Arriving during the Great Depression, he did various jobs to survive including farm labor, houseboy, and chauffeur.
Before World War II, he lived in Tucson, Arizona, where he joined his brother Marian (Mariano) and worked for a rich family as a chauffeur. Returning to his homeland of the Philippines was always in the back of his mind but he wanted to see more of the United States. He joined the U.S. Army before World War II as an expert Rifle man. After enlisting he got married to Eunice Skeens. He wanted to raise a family after he was honorably discharged from the U.S. Army in
1946. They have three children Linda Lou, Steve Eldon (deceased) and Rhonda Lee.
He lived in Mountain View for many years and built his house. In 1961, He moved to Palo Alto and lived there until the present. He was employed by the City of Palo Alto in 1951 as a Water Truck Operator in the Recreational and Park Department for 25 years. His marriage to Eunice ended in 1974. He was introduced to Laura Saguid in 1975 and they got married. They have one son named Hesper Catolico. He has 9 grandkids – Robert (deceased), Mardy, Stevie, Brandy Lee, Michael, Cassidy, Aaron, Stella, and Zaiden. He also has 9 great grand children – Lucia, Blayne, Avery, Gabriel, Jacob, Mercedes, Noah, Natalie, and Angela.
Arrangements under the direction of Lima Family Milpitas-Fremont Mortuary, Fremont, CA.
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