Josefina Vaquera

Obituary for Josefina Vaquera, Querida Esposa, Mama, Grandmama, Tia, Nina, Hermana

Josefina "Josie" Vaquera, of Bakersfield, CA, passed away on Friday, September 5th, 2025,

surrounded by her most precious family.

Josefina was born on July 23rd, 1940 in Quitupan, Jalisco, Mexico, to Aurelia Zepeda and

Guadalupe Garcia. She was the first of five children. The family later moved to Juarez, Mexico,

where she spent most of her youth. She left school in the 8th grade to help contribute to the family

living of selling burritos on the streets of Juarez. Little did we know this was just the beginning of

her career in food service.

It was a fateful day when she was out working at her carrito selling burritos that she was seen by our

father, Jose Alfonso Vaquera, II, (aka Joe) and offered him an apple. He was struck by her beauty

and generosity, and fell in love with her instantly. As was customary in that time (the late '50s), Joe

or Pepe, as he was known then, went to ask her mother, Aurelia, to date her daughter. After four

years of dating and many dates chaperoned by at least one of her siblings, she and my father

married on October 14th, 1962. Nine months and five days later, their first daughter, Maria

Eugenia, was born. The following year, their first son, Jose Alfonso, III, was born and handed to

Josie in a Christmas stocking.

After several years of difficulty finding work and her mother-in-law's decision to come to CA, they

packed up the family and headed west, as they say, and settled in Bakersfield in 1967, where a few

members of her husband's family already lived.

In 1971, Josie gave birth to her second daughter, Frances. With her family growing and needing

room, she and Joe bought their first home on Hayslett Ave in 1972. Later that same year, she gave

birth to her third daughter, Victoria. In 1979, Josie's family was complete with the birth of her

fourth daughter, Corina Valerie.

Recognizing the family needed more income to maintain their standard of living, Josie entered the

workforce in 1980, as many women were beginning to do at that time. She joined Bakersfield City

School District as a Cafeteria Lady and retiring from Freemont Elementary School after 25 years

of dedicated service. While there, she met Nancy Harris and Rosie Gonzalez, two of her closest

friends, whom she stayed in touch with during her retirement. Josie and all the ladies in Freemont

cafeteria took pride in their work serving the teachers and students. One of her primary

responsibilities was the Teachers Salad Bar, which she was particularly proud of. She received

many praises from her peers and teachers about how much they enjoyed her work.

After retiring in 2005, she devoted her retirement to traveling with her husband, Joe, to their

favorite close by places like Las Vegas and Laughlin. She visited Arizona, Virginia and

Washington, DC, Hawaii, and Puerto Vallarta. Many trips to Tijuana to watch bull fights and buy

blankets and supplies. Josie explored California with her husband, and in-laws, and traveled to

Paso Robles, many trips to San Francisco, Coronado, and Sunday trips with the family to Lakes

Buena Vista and Ming.

Spending time with her children, grandchildren and great grandchildren was by far Josie's most

favorite thing to do. She is survived by her five children, 14 grandchildren, and 20 greatgrandchildren.

Obituary for Josefina Vaquera, Querida Esposa, Mama, Grandmama, Tia, Nina, Hermana

Services will be held in Bakersfield on Sunday, September, 14th for Viewing from 4p-8p at

Greenlawn Cemetery Southwest on Panama Ln, with a Funeral Mass on Monday, the 15th, at 10am

at Our Lady of Guadalupe Church on California Ave.