Once upon a time, almost 100 years ago, God blessed us with the woman who was to be our mother, Elisa Saenz Delgado She died peacefully surrounded by her family on June 30, 2020 in New Braunfels, Texas, less than 20 days before her one hundredth birthday.
Elisa was born in 1920, in Seguin, TX, the eldest child of Enemencio and Jesusita Saenz. Her family moved to La Calera, also known as Dittlinger Village in New Braunfels, when she was 7. Above all, Elisa was a supportive wife, a loving mother and a doting grandmother. There was nothing she wouldn’t do for her family. She was a strong, resilient and independent woman. It wasn’t until she was 97 that she decided to give up the independence of living alone. She then went to live with her daughter Rosalinda in Kyle. However, the last three months of her life she spent with granddaughter Melissa who lovingly cared for her after two falls.
In the 1930’s, she, her mother and siblings worked as seasonal migrant workers, picking cherries and weeding beets in Michigan and returning home in the early fall. When her brother, Gilberto left for the service from Michigan, she drove the family home even though she had little experience driving. Elisa married Felipe Delgado in 1944. In 1947, she and Felipe co-founded the West End Park, where the Hispanic community of New Braunfels gathered to celebrate many special occasions with dances and fiestas. Other than dances, the business included roller skating, boxing matches and semi-pro baseball games on Sundays. While the public danced and cheered for the team, Elisa worked the concession stand and cooked the most memorable and tastiest hamburgers on her cast iron comal. Many in our community, at the most recent West End event, still commented to her about those memorable hamburgers. In 2017, the Delgados received the first Hispanic Historical marker in Comal County for the West End Hall and Baseball Field. Elisa was an incredibly hard worker. She helped with the business on weekends and, during the week, she worked as a seamstress and later as a supervisor at Cater Frock Co. (later Lizann) for 30+ years. She was an expert seamstress and said she learned to sew at a young age because she was very picky about how her clothes fit so her mother told her she had to make them herself. She made many life-long friends while working and she loved to visit with them. Despite her long hours of work, she never neglected her family and always made wonderful meals and desserts, kept an immaculate house, beautifully made most of her and her daughters’ clothes and simply loved them. She was also the primary seamstress for Melissa’s many folklorico dance costumes over the years, as well as for many of the Ballet Folklorico Infantil’s students’ costumes. In her retirement years (because she now had time), she loved to garden and read and enjoyed traveling with her daughters. She made several interstate trips, but amazingly, at the age of 85, she went to Italy and at age 90 she went to Michigan and traveled through Canada to Niagara Falls. She was adventurous and took it all in and never missed a beat. She was the matriarch of our family and a huge force in our lives and we will dearly miss her and her beautiful smile.
She is preceded in death by her parents, Enemencio and Jesusita Saenz, her siblings, Gilberto, Carlos and Rebecca Saenz and her husband Felipe Delgado. She is survived by her sister, Aurora Saenz, her daughters, Estella Farias (Bobby), Rosalinda Delgado-Zuniga (Mauricio), Grandchildren, Melissa Farias Zuniga (Marc), Robby Farias (Kendra), Andres Campos-Delgado (Karmen) and Xavier Farias (fiance Carrie). She was blessed with 10 great grandchildren and 1 great great grandchild and many friends.
Her family especially wishes to recognize Vangie Garcia Soto, her honorary granddaughter, Dora Cantu-Torres, Aracely Miranda and the Christus Hospice care team for their loving support and beautiful friendship. She always looked forward to everyone’s time and conversations about the events happening in the community or events of the past. A special thank you to Dora for being her constant companion to the end.
Our love and gratitude also to Elisa’s closest friends and family who helped her feel loved and who lifted her spirits during her toughest days. Concha Urdiales, the best neighbor and friend a lady could ever have. San Juana Garcia for keeping her always informed. Maria Saenz and Minnie Delgado, her sisters-in-law, for the many calls just to check in. Mary Padilla, may your Estrellita forever shine; and also many others too numerous to name. Elisa was a woman who loved her New Braunfels community and through the years, cultivated many friends whom she cherished and she was disappointed that, because of the social isolation, she couldn’t continue her personal connections with everyone during the last several months.
Due to the pandemic, the service was private and for immediate family only. If circumstances permit, the family hopes to have a memorial service next year to celebrate her 101st date of her birth.
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