Carolina Sanchez

Carolina “Caro” Sanchez was born on a small ranch in Jeréz, Zacatecas, México on March 11, 1932 to Alfredo Sanchez and Cayetana Valle. At 2 years old, Caro’s family moved to the border town of Tijuana, where she grew up. Altogether, she had two brothers and four sisters: Juan (“John”), José, Maria, Anita, Lupe and Graciela. She met and fell in love with Luis Sanchez of Oceanside, California. They married at St. Mary Star of the Sea Church on June 26, 1954, moving to Oceanside, where she lived for 63 years, until her death. Soon after their marriage, Caro immediately started to work – first in the fields and the canneries, and then at Reeves, Inc., a rubber factory in San Clemente, where she worked for 25 years. Caro taught herself to read in English and Spanish. Along with her husband, she worked hard to provide for her family – a home, education, and the potential for a better life. Caro and Luis had three children – Esther, Louie and Tony. She involved herself in the education of her children, as well as the betterment of her community of Eastside. Her work made it possible for her daughter Esther to attend and graduate from Brown University. She also loved her two boys, becoming their biggest fans in their pursuit of sports. She helped raise her grandchildren – Michael, Cristina, David and Christian. Caro loved her family, which included her husband’s family, and all those lucky to cross her path. She loved her husband, children, grandchildren and great grandchildren very, very much. She could be heard saying, “te quiero mucho.” If you responded, she would then say, “no más que yo.” She had a heart of gold. Along with constantly improving her home and the lives of her family, Caro’s hobbies included gardening, tejidos (crocheting), cooking, telenovelas, and her family and friends. Caro made the best tacos, menudo, tamales, rice, beans, papitas, tortillas, just about everything she cooked. When the rubber factory closed, Caro took a job at Furr’s Cafeteria, where she got to see many friends from the neighborhood. Caro became a U.S. Citizen in 1996. She insisted on taking the citizenship class and test in English, something that gave her great pride. Caro lost her husband on January 8, 2015, after 61 years together. Despite being a very healthy senior, she lost her battle with cancer on September 25, 2017, surrounded by her family. She is survived by her brother John and sisters Anita, Lupe and Graciela; her children Esther, Louie and Tony (and Angie); her grandchildren Michael (and Adriana), Cristina (and Jeff), David, and Christian; and great grandchildren Christian Junior (“CJ”), Thomas and Anthony. Viewing and Rosary are on Thursday, October 12th, 4-8 PM, with Rosary at 6 PM, at Eternal Hills Chapel, Oceanside. Mass/celebration of her life will be at St. Mary Star of the Sea Church, Oceanside, where she was a parishioner for 63 years, on Friday, October 13th, 11 am. Burial at Eternal Hills. Reception following.