Louis Gonzales

1932 - 2021

Louis Gonzales
Dec. 27, 1932 – Jan. 15, 2021
Louis Gonzales, 88, passed away peacefully in Stockton on January 15, 2021, after a short battle with cancer. Louis died in the home he built more than 60 years ago, and where his three children were raised. It became a hub for his community and social justice advocacy, for political campaigns and organization meetings, and for welcoming friends and family and people in need. Louie was a positive force in his family, neighborhood, and community.
Louie was born Dec. 27, 1932, in Hamer, Idaho, to Natividad Gonzales and Matias Montalvo. The family moved to Stockton in 1934. Louie was 4 years old when his father died, leaving his mother to raise seven children alone. Louie worked in a local food cannery at night while he was in high school to help support the family. He graduated from Stockton College in 1952 and received his Associate of Arts degree from Humphreys College in 1961. He served in the U.S. Army from 1953 to 1955 and was stationed at Fort Carson, CO. He returned to Stockton, and in 1958, he married his first wife, Rachel Rubalcaba, and they had three children. He worked at Sharpe Army Depot, and later transferred to Tracy Defense Depot. He retired in 1987 after 34 years of federal civil service.
Louie was a constant and tireless voice for his community, diving in wherever he saw a need to help oppressed or vulnerable people. In 1955, he became active in the Community Service Organization (CSO), a grassroots activist group led by United Farm Workers' president Cesar Chavez. As treasurer of the Stockton CSO credit union for 13 years, Louie was a key ally in the UFW's efforts to offer poor and immigrant families a path to financial stability and opportunity, and to organize laborers for humane wages and working conditions. His home became a meeting space for Chavez and co-organizer Dolores Huerta to conduct CSO business and to stage UFW marches.
Louie served on the board of the California Rural Legal Assistance League, and he served on the Coalition of Mexican-American Organizations (COMA) for more than 40 years, beginning in the 1960s. He served as the chairman of the Human Rights Task Force, begun in 1993 following the killing of two innocent people during a mistaken police drug raid. Louie served on the task force until 1995, helping to implement police procedural changes. He was chairman of the Community Action Council, and active for many years in the St. Linus Catholic parish as a catechism teacher and fundraising chair. He also volunteered at the U.S. Citizenship Day and the county Voter Registration Education Project.
Louie saw education as the bedrock for improving the lives of underprivileged families. That belief led him to serve on the Stockton Unified School District Board of Education from 1990 - 1992, and from 1994 - 2006. He left a legacy of fiercely championing his South Stockton constituents, focusing on civil and minority rights, and creating meaningful and equal educational opportunities.
He was inducted into Stockton's Mexican-American Hall of Fame in 1997. That same year, he was the Grand Marshal for the Cinco de Mayo parade. He was also active in the Stockton Sister Cities Association, acting as a delegate to Empalme, Mexico, and hosting several delegations of visitors from the sister city. He organized donations of clothes and supplies to Empalme, and led an ambitious effort to acquire retired Stockton city fire engines for donation and transportation to Empalme. It was through his work with the Sister Cities Association that he met his second wife Luz Mariscal, a delegate from Empalme.
In 2008, he joined the board of directors of the Comisión Honorifica Mexicana, an organization founded in 1938 to serve Mexican immigrants and preserve their culture. He volunteered much of his time later in life to running the Comisión's center on South Lincoln Street, known as La Jamaica, which for decades has served as an event space for classes and community activities.
In addition to his public service, Louie was perhaps more importantly known by his family, friends, and neighbors for his kindness and generosity, freely giving his time - and any physical resources he could find or spare - without asking for anything in return. To his children, he was steadfast and devoted, a model of integrity and ethics, dedicated to education and service. His grandchildren will remember him as warm and caring, fun-loving, positive, and always ready for a family get-together. He rarely missed a soccer game, school activity, birthday or holiday.
Louie is survived by his wife of 17 years, Luz Mariscal; his daughter Yolanda Solano (Mario) of Santa Rosa; his sons Gregory (Anne) and Joseph (Joanola), both of Sacramento; brother Alfredo Gonzales and sister Caroline Hernandez, both of Stockton; five grandchildren and two great-grandchildren.
Louie was laid to rest with a family service. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made in Louie's honor to La Jamaica Center, 609 S. Lincoln St., Stockton, CA 95203.