Zenaida Zagala Ebitner, age 75, passed away on Monday, June 24, 2019 from heart failure.  She was born to the late Candido Zagala and Teofila Dawis on December 19, 1943 in Manila, Philippines and was the middle child and only sister to six brothers.  She was preceeded in death by her brothers Ernesto, Ricardo, George, Danilo and Vicente.

Zenaida's brother Ernie was in the U.S. Navy with a handsome young sailor named Agripino ("Ben") Labrador Ebitner.  Ernie showed Ben a picture of his beautiful sister Zenaida and Ben wanted to meet her. After a 30-day courtship, the two lovebirds were married on July 25, 1961.

During Ben's 20-year tour in the Navy, she bore him four children Vyrna Corazon in 1963, Arthur Louis in 1967, Anthony Ray in 1968, and Zena Grace in 1970.  She was a dutiful Navy wife and in the early days stayed home to raise their children in both San Diego County, California and Norfolk, Virginia.

After Zenaida retired as a Document Control Clerk Specialist at SAIC, she made herself available for grandma duties, caring for her grandchildren.  Most recently she worked one day a week for a neighbor's day care business babysitting the toddlers. She really enjoyed this time with the babies and was very proud to have been CPR-certified as part of the job requirement.

Zenaida enjoyed crocheting and sewing, especially for her grandchildren, as well as gardening (cultivating orchids and plumerias were favorites), and exercising (Zumba, U-Jam, and other aerobic exercises topped her regimen).  She was well-traveled and enjoyed sharing these experiences with friends and especially her grandchildren.

Zenaida is survived by her husband Ben, their four children (Vyrna, Art, Tony and Zena), 11 grandchildren (Lauren, Miriya, Kiralynn, Tony Jr., Janae, Haley, Quentin, Juliann, Nathaniel, Athena, and Benjamin), her brother Wilfredo Zagala, numerous cousins, nieces and nephews, and her dog Kokey.