Basilio Garza Jr.

Las Cruces- It is with great sorrow that we announce the passing of Basilio Garza, Jr. on December 10, 2025, at his home in Las Cruces, NM after a two-year battle with esophageal cancer. He was born on October 5, 1965, in the city of San Juan, Texas to Basilio and Estela Garza. He was a loving son, brother, father, husband and uncle. He loved his family with all of his heart.
After 28 years of service, he retired as Special Operation Supervisor in December of 2020 from the U. S. Customs and Border Protection. Basilio attended South West Texas University in San Marcos, Texas and Pan American University in Edinburg, Texas as a criminal justice major. Before joining the Border Patrol, he worked for Montgomery Wards in Austin and in Pharr, Texas as a loss prevention specialist.
Basilio, known to many as Bach, had many interests; he was an avid reader, a history buff, a collector of comic books, baseball and football cards. He modeled his life after the westerns and war movie heroes he so enjoyed watching. He was a devoted fan to the Dallas Cowboys and the Houston Astros. He would never miss a game. He loved being in his garden, listening to music and barbecuing for his family.
For 32 years he made Las Cruces, New Mexico his home with his family. He often shared stories of growing up in South Texas in the Rio Grande Valley with his six siblings and multiple cousins. He would joke that when all the cousins got together there were enough of them to make two teams. Bach was very proud of his upbringing and the strong family values his parents instilled in him.
Basilio is survived by his wife, Magdalena (Maggie), of thirty six years, his daughter, Samantha Garza and his son, Matthew Garza. Basilio is survived by his mother Estela Garza of Pharr, TX and his sisters Melissa Cortez (Rick) and Melinda Garza of Pharr, TX. He is survived by his brothers, Roel Garza (Irene) of Mission, TX, Raudel Garza (Liza) of McAllen, TX, Rolando Garza of Austin, TX and Rudy Garza (Yesenia) of San Juan, TX. He is also survived by his numerous aunts, uncles, cousins, nephews and nieces in Texas and California. He was preceded in death by his father Basilio Garza, Sr., infant brother Basilio Garza and his infant daughter April.
The family is grateful to all the family and friends for sending well wishes and prayers of hope the past few years as he faced a difficult medical journey with esophageal cancer. He never gave up. For two and a half years, Basilio and his wife traveled to MDAnderson Cancer Center in Houston, TX; a heartfelt thank you to all the professionals and staff at MDAnderson. The family would also like to thank the staff of Memorial Cancer Center who honored his wishes to continue his cancer fight here in Las Cruces. To all the medical professionals, nurses, doctors, and therapists at Mountain View Hospital, Advanced Care Hospital of Southern New Mexico, the Rehabilitation Hospital of Southern New Mexico and Tender Care Home Health and Hospice Care your kindness and professional knowledge will not be forgotten.
Pallbearers will be Matthew Garza, Guillermo Torres, Manuel Ibarbo, Jose Pargas, Roel Garza and Raudel Garza. Honorary pallbearers are Rolando Garza, Rudy Garza, Robert Longoria, Emilio Garza and Horacio Cantu, Jr.
Viewing will be held at Perches Graham Funeral home, 555 W. Amador Ave. Las Cruces, NM 88005 on January 7th from 4:00 to 8:00 PM. Prayer will be led by Pastor Jim Beltran at 6:00 pm. His services will be held at Perches as well on January 8th from 9:00 to 10:30 AM and graveside will be held afterwards at 11:00 at Hillcrest Memorial Gardens, 5140 W. Picacho Ave. Las Cruces, NM 88007. To view online obituary, visit perchesgrahams.com To send flowers to the family or plant a tree in memory of Basilio, please visit our floral store.