Edelmiro Garza

March 3, 1935 – October 27, 2021

Edelmiro Garza, a longtime Moses Lake resident, passed away to be with the Lord on Tuesday, Oct. 27, at Holy Family Hospital in Spokane, Washington.

“Miro” as he was known by many, and “Wello” to the rest of his family, was born on March 3, 1935, in Garza Gonzalez, Nuevo Leon, Mexico, to Lorenzo and Maria de Refugio Garza. He was one of nine children. On July 15, 1956 he married the love of his life, Lydia DeLeon, in Cape Charles, Virginia. After several years of migrant work in Virginia, Florida, Texas, California and Washington, they finally settled down and made their family home here in Moses Lake in 1959. Together they devoted their lives to their six children: Mary Brucker of Moses Lake, Edelmiro Garza Jr. of Federal Way, Rolando (Lynn) Garza of Moses Lake, Paula (Jon) Newman of Federal Way, Lydia (Ramon) Garcia of Moses Lake and Sandra (Ricardo) Lopez of Kent. They have seven grandchildren Jacquelynn, Eric and Marcus Garcia; Matthew and Grace Garza and Lydia and Sarah Riojas and six great grandchildren.

In 1964, Miro surrendered his heart to Jesus and began attending the Mission at Westlake that would later become El Sendero de la Cruz. He had a great gift of encouragement and leadership and he became a deacon for over 50 years. During that time he taught Sunday school and filled in for pastors when needed. Miro was dedicated to his faith and you would always find him greeting all who came through the church doors.

And just like at church, Wello would always greet family and friends at the door of his home. He looked forward to worshiping every week, and he also looked forward to our family lunches every Sunday after church. He was the head of the table at every meal and blessed each person there with a prayer as he would say, “Dios te bendiga.”

Edelmiro Garza was much more than a casualty of COVID. His life was well lived and he was well loved. Family was pivotal to his life. He was proud and honored of the many titles he had earned throughout his 86 years. He was a man of God, a truck driver, a golf enthusiast, a piñata destroyer, the man behind the wheel of many family road trips and one of the most excited for a family cruise. He was an adventure seeker; he was a beloved pillar of his community and a strong foundation for his family. We called him all of those things. But we all know that his favorite things to be called were both “Papi” and “Wello.” He will be remembered for his bright smile, caring heart, loving embrace, loud sneezes, animated hands and unconditional love.

We would like to thank all the health care professionals from Samaritan Hospital in Moses Lake and Holy Family in Spokane for their dedicated care in the last weeks of his life. We are sincerely grateful to the wonderful staff and volunteers who comforted and cared for not only him, but all of us, in his last days.

He was someone who had a love for life and a firm understanding of what was important. The simple joys of life with those you love. Our family is grieving his loss; we feel the empty void very deeply. The head of the family is no longer here with us. But we remind ourselves that although our hearts are heavy, we will continue to celebrate his life and find comfort that he is now with Wella watching over us all, because not even death can keep him from remaining present in our lives. And we are so lucky to have known and experienced his love.

He is survived by his children, grandchildren and great grandchildren and his siblings Minerva Martinez of McFarland, California, Hector “Tito” of Othello, Washington, and Blanca Veiss of McFarland, California.

The family asks that you spend time with your children, take a walk on the beach with your loved ones and make a toast to enduring relationships lifelong and beyond. That is what Wello would wish for all of us.

Please express your thoughts and memories at www.kayserschapel.com. Arrangements are under the care of Kayser’s Chapel of Memories of Moses Lake, Washington.