Mary Asencion Gonzales, the most loving wife, mother, grandmother and great-grandmother, passed away peacefully the morning of October 26, 2022 in her home surrounded by her husband and her children. She was 82.

Mary lived a loving and cherished life. She was born on August 15, 1940 in San Antonio, Texas to her parents Lorenzo and Aurora Rivera. Mary had close and loving relationships with her siblings, whom she adored. She attended Lanier High School and played the flute in the Lanier High School Marching Band.

She married the love of her life, Felix Aranda Gonzales, on December 29, 1956. In 1964, Mary and Felix moved to California, where Mary lovingly cared for and raised her children and loved every minute helping care for her grandchildren. She was a longtime parishioner at Good Shepherd Catholic Church, one of its original parishioners in 1973. Mary loved her annual roadtrips back to Texas to spend tim e with her parents and family. She loved to travel, including international trips to the Netherlands, Germany, Italy, Mexico, and numerous trips across the U.S., including San Francisco, New York, Boston, Washington D.C., Pennsylvania, New Mexico, and Florida. She shared that love of travel with her children and grandchildren.

Mary loved the sound of the ocean and trains, and gazing at the moon at night. She had a wonderful sense of humor and made everyone she met smile. She had a love for music and dancing. Above all else, she was devoted to her family who meant the world to her.

Mary is survived by her husband of 65 years, Felix A. Gonzales; her children, Cathy (Jaime) Chavez, Deborah (Tom) Woods, Felix (Leticia) Gonzales, and Cindy Marcelino; her son-in-law Robert Goldsborough, her grandchildren Candace (Cullen) Sweet, Lyndsey (Andrew) Marcelino Schalkwyk, Stephen Godinez, Emilio (Courtney) Marcelino, Emily (Trevor) Goldsborough, Grace Goldsborough, Sergio Chavez, and Mateo Gonzales; her great-grandchildren Ciarán, Cara, Conor, Oliver, and Everett;
her step great-grandchild Philip; her brother Frank (Diana) Rivera; her sister-in-law Bonnie Rivera; and all her nieces, nephews, cousins, and friends.

Mary is reunited in heaven with her parents Lorenzo and Aurora Rivera, her daughter Liz Gonzales, her sisters Guadalupe Rivera, Estella Olivares and Mary Louise Zurita, her brother Lorenzo Rivera Jr., her mother- and father-in-law Sixto and Trinidad Gonzales, and her sister-in-law Bea Gonzales. Many other friends and family members have gone before and also welcome Mary into the kingdom of heaven.

A rosary at 10:00 a.m., followed by a funeral mass at 11:00 a.m., will be celebrated on Monday, November 7, 2022, at Good Shepherd Catholic Church, 8200 Gold Coast Drive, San Diego, CA 92126. A committal service will be held at 1:00 p.m. at Dearborn Memorial Park 14361 Tierra Bonita Road, Poway, CA 92064. A reception will follow.

Friends and family are welcome to live stream the mass at https://www.goodshepherdparis h.net .