Elena Castillo died on Saturday, June 8, 2013 from metastatic renal cell carcinoma. Elena was born in México City in 1934. She spent her formative years in Chihuahua, Chihuahua, México and met her husband, José Antonio Calderón in Cd. Juárez, México where she married. She had her three children by the time she was 19 and was greatly inspired by her father, a lawyer and district judge, to strive for a better life. Without knowing English, she and her family moved to Los Angeles, San Diego, and El Paso, Texas.
Thanks to her love and motivation, her three children finished college and have a better life. They are Irma Calderón Woodruff, owner of Visión Marketing Partners; Olga Calderón, Senior Communications Translator for Well-Med Medical Management; and José Antonio (Tony) Calderón, a retired Graphic Designer who lives with his long-time partner, Skip Merten. Elena is also survived by her only sister, Olga Castillo de Chretín, who lives in Chihuahua City. She has three grandchildren: Cassandra Miranda, José Miranda and Whitney Woodruff, all in San Antonio. She also has five great grandchildren.
In 1993, Elena moved to San Antonio and lived with Irma’s family for 19 years. She was very proud of forming a group of Spanish-Dominant Ladies, “Las Rorras,” who gather once each month to practice and retain their use of the Spanish language and traditions. Before dying, she spent seven months under Tony and Skip’s care, for which the entire family is grateful. She spent her last days with Irma and Olga. The family wishes to acknowledge Vitas Hospice for helping the family to provide comfort and care throughout her illness. The family would also like to thank Dr. Kristi Clark for her excellent patient care and Jennifer Chapman, her Hospice primary care nurse.
To celebrate Elena’s life, there will be a rosary at 6 p.m. at Holy Spirit Catholic Church on Blanco Road on Tuesday June 18, followed by a mass at 7 p.m., and a reception at 8 p.m. in the Church’s Banquet Hall. In lieu of flowers, the family would appreciate donations to the Vitas Hospice Charitable Fund or the American Cancer Society.
SHARE OBITUARY
v.1.8.18