Juan Jose Garcia

On Wednesday, August 26, 2020, Mr. Juan Jose Garcia, Jr. joined God, his wife Violanda, daughter Melissa Ann Juarez, father Juan Jose Garcia, mother Aurora Leal, and brother Jimmy in Heaven. It was a beautiful day as Juan Jose was reunited with his family.

Juan Jose Garcia, a.k.a. Joe was born on June 3, 1943, to Juan Jose Garcia, Sr. and Aurora Leal in Harlingen, Texas. Joe grew up in Weslaco, Texas and he had a penchant for traveling. He studied hard while attending school and had a strong curiosity to see and learn all that he could about the world. Later, this young, talented individual from Weslaco, Texas would head North to become one of Milwaukee, Wisconsin’s youngest and talented citizens graduating from the University Of Wisconsin-Milwaukee with a Bachelor of Arts in Education and an excellent academic record.

Before Joe had a chance to explore the vast landscapes and beautiful plains of Wisconsin, he enlisted in the U.S. Navy in 1960 to help defend his homeland from the communistic grasp of the North Vietnamese ruthless dictator, Ho Chi Minh. Joe had a double celebration in the year 1969 with the birth of his first child, Melissa Ann, in Madison, Wisconsin, and the demise and perishing of Ho Chi Minh in Hanoi, Vietnam. Later in 1970 his first son, Hector Rene was born in Mendota, Illinois. Soon afterward in 1971, his second daughter, Belinda was born in Weslaco, Texas. And lastly in 1972, his second son, Cesar Ricardo was born in Mendota, Illinois. After serving his country bravely amongst some of his hometown friends from Weslaco, Joe was honorably discharged from the U.S. Navy on the 3rd day of February 1978.

Throughout his life, Joe was proud to have had the honor and privilege of protecting his country and helping others from around the globe.
After risking his life in Vietnam, Joe was ready to settle into the robust city of Milwaukee. But first, he needed a wife and his heart caught a glimpse of his future when he met Violanda Romero in the migrant labor fields that had so often tested their resolve.

Joe fell in love with the dazzling young eight-teen-year-old from Monterrey, the capital and largest city of the northeastern Mexican state of Nuevo Leon, Mexico. His heart was set on marrying this petite, beautiful woman and he prayed to God that love would come his way. God soon answered his prayers when Joe and Violanda traveled back to Violanda’s hometown and were married at the Saint Pius X Church of Monterrey in 1967.

This vibrant, young couple was now ready to plant some roots in Milwaukee’s south side, and Joe didn’t waste any time giving back to his new hometown. He began to help individuals find job placement with Milwaukee’s chapter of SER, a workforce program that helped aspiring people get to a good place in life. It was at SER that Joe began to mold his adult mind with acts of kindness, love, joy, and peace that he was known to share with everyone.

Joe moved on from working at SER to working as an electrician with Evinrude Motors, a company founded in Milwaukee that built outboard motors for boats. Joe was tasked with improving the robotics division at Evinrude and he excelled with this new opportunity. Evinrude was a great employer and a generous company as they often hosted large gatherings for their families. Joe really enjoyed being right in the middle of the celebrations with his own family.
Now earning a larger salary, Joe was able to move his family into a comfortable north side Milwaukee neighborhood. It was while at this new address that Joe would propel himself into his future roles as a great father, husband, provider, and his position in the community.

While improving the robotics division at Evinrude, Joe sought a new path and began to work with General Electric. General Electric was also a family-oriented business and that suited Joe fine as he quickly made life long friends there and was welcomed to many of GE’s social events. By now his skills in troubleshooting and developing new technology with GE were starting to turn company heads. General Electric was a proud company and they wanted Joe to stay for a long time. This was not to be, however, as Joe already had his sights on a new prize, one that would truly give him the freedom that he always yearned.

While Joe and Violanda began to live a blessed life in Milwaukee, they always remembered their family in Mexico. Every summer Joe would pack up his vehicle and head for the mountains of Monterrey to reunite with his vast family of parents, siblings, aunts, uncles, nephews, and nieces. No matter that the distance was a daunting 1,629 miles away, Joe was taught early on by his father to always keep his family close and that traveling to a friend or family’s house was always a drive well spent. Making that drive to Monterrey required the assistance of everyone in the family and Violanda, Melissa, Hector, Belinda, and Cesar all had their roles. The wife and kids all worked as one co-pilot for their father, as Violanda didn’t drive, and together they ensured the safety of everyone’s trip. Spending the summers in the sun-filled streets of Monterrey was a nice break from the Milwaukee winters, one of the harshest winters of all of the United States. Joe was very fond of his Mexican family and he always said that his “Monterrey family were the salt of the earth.”

In Milwaukee, gifts from GE in the form of generous stock options could not keep Joe at GE, and in 1983 he gathered his family and moved back to his southern Texas border hometown of Weslaco, Texas. Back in the town of the Purple and White, Joe began to work for himself when he formed Rainbow Electric & A.C., a business entity which gave him the luxury of being able to call his own shots and further develop his signature skills of love, peace, and compassion. Honing his business acumen in the HVAC industry got Joe a lot of friends. People in south Texas’ Rio Grande Valley appreciated Joe for helping them stay cool in the hot and humid climate. This latest entrepreneurial endeavor finally gave Joe the life he had always wanted. He was providing for his family and he did it his way.
It was in Weslaco that Joe found his final home. Weslaco was great to him in the fact that his grandchildren and great-grandchildren were always nearby. He had twelve grandchildren and three great-grandchildren, and he lived out his final days spending time with those little darlings. The south Texas sunrises were always a sign of wonderful new beginnings for Joe, and he made the most of every day. In Weslaco, Joe embraced the teachings of Jesus Christ and Jesus Christ embraced him right back.

Singing the gospels of Christ at church and at home was a fulfilling past time and he liked sharing his faith. Long before his passing, Joe had accepted the love and forgiveness that only God can provide. When times were difficult, Joe was always confident. He liked to say that when you follow God, “your blessed by the best!” We liked to say that when Juan Jose Garcia was around, one could always feel the presence of God. As God loves his children, so did Joe. We anxiously await the presence of God in Heaven and to be reunited with Joe’s big, big smile. For now, Joe’s warm smile can be found within everyone that knew him well.

Joe is preceded in death by his wife Violanda, his daughter, Melissa Ann Juarez, his Father Juan Jose Garcia, his mother Aurora Leal, and many family members. He is survived by his son, Hector Rene Garcia (Laura), his daughter Belinda Alvarado (Oscar), his son Cesar Ricardo Garcia, grandchildren Keith, Brianna, Alyssandra, Tatiana, Delinah, Ayesha, Ethan, Gabriel, Samuel, Christopher, J.B. and Ricky and three great-grandchildren, Christian, Matthew and Alexander and many other brothers-in-law and sisters-in-law, nieces, nephews, brothers, and sisters.

Visitation will be Friday, September 4th, 10:00 am-9:00 pm, with a prayer service at 7:00 pm. Graveside service will be Saturday, September 5th at Highland Memorial Park at 10:00 am. Serving as pallbearers will be Hector Rene Garcia, Keith A. Garcia, Juan Puente, Christopher A. Garcia, Jonathan B. Garcia, and Mario Gonzalez, Jr.