Manuel Gonzales

Manuel Gonzales, of Taylor, passed away at the age of 73, with his family by his side, on October 11, 2022.

Manuel was born on December 29, 1948, to Sisto and Juanita (Diaz) Gonzales. He grew up with three brothers and five sisters.   He married the love of his life, Patsy (Salazar), on September 6, 1969, in Our Lady of Guadalupe Catholic Church in Taylor. To this marriage came four children, 10 grandchildren, and one great-grandchild.

Manuel was a hardworking man who wore many hats.  He began working many years ago as a migrant field worker picking cotton with his siblings and father.   At the age of 14, he worked at Taylor Ford Company as a Porter and continued working with various local dealerships until 1989.  During this time, he worked part-time with Rogers Exxon for many years.  In 1990, Manuel began his 20+ year career with Taylor Independent School District and retired in 2018 as Yard Maintenance Supervisor.  In 2000, he opened his own business, MG Mobile After Hours Tire Service.  Manuel loved interacting with his customers, who would often become friends over the years.  Many would drive up to the shop to find Manuel working with one of his sons or grandsons and have their flats fixed, most would end up staying to talk or BS for hours.  “The Shop” as it came to be known, was one of Manuel’s proudest achievements, second only to his family.

Manuel proudly considered himself a UT graduate having completed his GED at the Austin campus in 1990. He went on to complete a Certification for Pesticides Non-Commercial Applicator License at Texas A&M University at College Station.

Manuel’s children, grandchildren and great-grandchild loved him unconditionally for who he was. Manuel was always himself, never a pretender, and took pride in his personality.  He was generous, funny, stern, honest, loud, at times crazy, and above all else extremely loving. Aside from his family, friends and The Shop, Manuel loved the church. He took part in many fundraisers, festivals, and activities to benefit Our Lady of Guadalupe Catholic Church in Taylor. These included raffle ticket sales, BBQ fundraisers, sponsoring Sunday church hall breakfasts, and participated in the yearly church Jamaica with a food booth. He was a charter member of the Knights of Columbus Council 10012.

Manuel was a popular man, with countless friends both near and far, whom he loved fiercely. You would often find him with his favorite dance partner, Patsy, at a wedding, quincenera, or any local live music venue. Their dancing style was admired by many. Manuel loved a party, hosting a dance or event whenever he could, especially his yearly big New Year’s Eve celebrations. Manuel enjoyed holidays, particularly Halloween where he could be found dressed as Batman, Thanksgiving where he would smoke a whole turkey to perfection, and Christmas where he and his family would sponsor and build a themed float that would (almost) always win a ribbon.

Manuel is preceded in death by his parents Sisto and Juanita Gonzales, siblings Pete and Larry Gonzales, Guadalupe Flores, Ramona Romo, Mary Morin, Vangie Magana, and granddaughter Nona Jude Gonzales.

Manuel is survived by his loving wife of 53 years, Patsy; children, Gabriel (Jessica), Daniel (Carmelita), Veronica Griffin (Fredrick), Sisto (Katie Engelke); grandchildren Ryan (Jade), Sierra (Daniel Moreno), Isaiah, Ezra, Abriella, Giuliana, Maximiliano, Emiliano, Jaxon; and great-grandson Mateo; siblings Tony Gonzales (Lana) and Gloria Tamez; and faithful sidekick Lucky (dog).

Visitation is to be held from 6:00 to 8:00 with the Recitation of the Holy Rosary at 7:00 pm Monday, October 17, 2022 at Our Lady of Guadalupe Church, 111 W. Rio Grande St., Taylor.

Mass of Christian Burial will be held at 10:00 am Tuesday, October 18, 2022 at Our Lady of Guadalupe Church with burial to follow at Our Lady of Guadalupe Cemetery.

Honoring Manuel as pallbearers will be nephews; Joe Magana Jr., Chris Gonzales, David Dominguez, Sebastian Salazar, Ralph Tamez and family friend, but more like another son, John Michael Juarez Sr.

Honorary pallbearers will be his grandsons; Ryan Gonzales, Isaiah Gonzales, Jaxon Miles Gonzales, son-in-law Fredrick Griffin and best friends Severino Torres, Jesse Ancira Sr., Roy Ancira and Mike Morales.