Ellie Maese Duran

After a long and debilitating illness, it is with great sadness and sorrow that we announce the passing of our beloved ELLIE MAESE DURAN, 76, mother, grandmother, great grandmother, and sister on March 4, 2024, at The Hospitals of Providence in El Paso, TX, surrounded by her loving family. May the Lord welcome her with open arms into His Heavenly Kingdom.  Ellie was born in El Paso, TX on January 3, 1948, to Cipriano Rede Maese and Delphina Padilla Maese.   

Ellie began her employment career in 1967 at the Employment Services Office in Las Cruces, later worked at Chicano Affairs Programs - Garcia Hall Annex, Auxiliary Services - Corbett Center, Physical Science Laboratories (PSL), and lastly Water Resources Research Institute (WRRI) at NMSU Campus until her retirement in December 2000 to care for her ailing parents.

She was a communicant of The Basilica of San Albino Catholic Church, Mesilla NM where she sang in the 8:00AM and 11:00 AM choir masses for many years and later volunteered her services in the Parish finance office. She loved to dance! She and her husband Daniel would get on the dance floor where they ‘spun’ like a top. We loved watching them dance. We will miss her robust laugh, her jokes, (her brother-in-law Ray, loved to tell her all his jokes because of her wholehearted laughter), which got all of us laughing too. She was a diehard Dallas Cowboys football fan where the family was divided in half when playing with the Pittsburgh Steelers team!

She is survived by one daughter, Annette Kowalski (Mark) of Ruidoso, NM and one son Brandon Chavez (Ester) of Arvada, CO. Her grandchildren Brett Kowalski, Brandon (Bear) Chavez and Abigail Chavez.  Other grandchildren include Eric Chavez, Alexandria Chavez, Jeremy Chavez, and Aireanna Chavez Le Blanc, her sisters Shirley Maese Lucero, Tommie Maese, Wilma Maese and Diana Maese Gomez, all of Mesilla, NM and numerous nieces, nephews and cousins, a very special Aunt, Cecilia Maese Padilla, and Josefina Alvarez Maese, of Las Cruces, NM and one Uncle, Ernesto Estrada Padilla (Corine) of Mesilla, NM.

She is preceded in death by her parents, her husband Daniel, sister Emma Jean Maese, infant brother Oscar Edmund Maese, brother-in-law Raymond (Ray) H. Lucero, maternal grandparents Ygnacio and Margarita Estrada Padilla, paternal grandparents Jesus and Tomasa Rede Maese, aunts, uncles, and numerous cousins.

Many thanks to family, friends and all medical staff at ICU Mountain View Hospital Las Cruces NM, and staff at The Hospitals of Providence El Paso, TX. for their kindness and compassion during Ellie’s illness.  A very heartwarming special thanks to cousins Arturo and Maria Elena Jurado for their generosity, Ophelia Rittenhouse and Marty Portillo for giving of themselves, even when Ellie didn’t express her needs to anyone – they were there.

A very heartfelt ‘Thank You!’ to The Very Reverend Christopher Williams of The Basilica and to Baca’s Funeral Chapels who have been so understanding, kind, compassionate and giving of their services to our family in this trying and difficult time.  May God bless you all.

At her request cremation has taken place. As per her strict instructions and wishes, private services will be held at a later date.

Service arrangements have been entrusted to the care of Baca’s Funeral Chapel of Las Cruces and Sunset Crematory, 527-2222. Your exclusive provider for “Veterans and Family Memorial Care.” For online condolences logon to www.bacasfuneralchapelslascruces.com