Lily Segundo Vasquez peacefully joined her Lord on November 7, 2021. Lily was born in Charlotte, Texas to Clemente and Rufina (Gonzales) Segundo on May 29, 1938. She was the third of eleven children. Her family moved to Arizona in 1944 living in Cotton Center, Palo Verde and eventually settled in Buckeye in 1960.
Lily was an avid reader and spoke fondly of her school years in Palo Verde and Buckeye. Before she was married, Lily worked for the Turner family in Buckeye, caring for their developmentally disabled son. She remembered discovering that his challenges did not keep him from learning, and said God gave her that experience to prepare her to be a mom. Lily married Gilbert Vasquez on May 11, 1962 and they had one daughter, Theresa, and two sons, Jack and Gil. In 1967, Lily and Gilbert settled in Firebaugh after traveling for the first few years of their marriage with Gilbert’s work in the produce business. Her two grandsons, Lawrence and Edward Vasquez, were her reasons for living after the death of her son, Jack, in 1990, and her serious illness in 2009. She helped to raise both of these boys and had a second turn at being a room mother, working on fundraisers, and being a basketball mom at St. Joseph’s School in Firebaugh and San Joaquin Memorial in Fresno.
Lily enjoyed watching professional sports. Her favorite baseball team was the New York Yankees and after moving to California, it became the San Francisco Giants. The Boston Celtics & Larry Bird were her beloved basketball team for many years. Later it became Steph Curry & the Golden State Warriors, the Phoenix Suns, and any teams Brook & Robin or Quincy joined. Lily also liked watching football. The San Francisco 49ers, Las Vegas Raiders, the Arizona Cardinals, as well as Josh & the Buffalo Bills were among her beloved teams. We had a lot of fun watching these young men from our local area play, and Lily was very proud of their successes.
Lily spent her entire life taking care of her family and she was wonderful cook and baker. She was always searching cookbooks and magazines for recipes, loved watching the Cooking Channel, Fox News, PBS, EWTN, and the History Channel. She was a woman of deep faith and credited God & prayers for her recovery from serious illnesses in 2009. The last years of her life, Lily especially enjoyed studying the Bible with her friends from Church.
Lily is survived by her husband, Gilbert, her daughter, Theresa, her son, Gil and his partner, Sonia Villareal, grandchildren, Lawrence and Edward, her brothers, Juan Segundo, David Segundo, Clemente Segundo Jr., her sisters, Marie Gonzalez, Mary Berrelez, Patti Villa, Gloria Segundo, Beatrice Segundo and Tina Segundo along with numerous nieces and nephews.
She was preceded in death by her parents Rufina and Clemente Segundo Sr., her son, Jack Edward Vasquez, brother, Jesus Segundo, sister, Mercy Tercero, niece, Rosalie Gonzales, and nephew, Gerardo Segundo..
The funeral service is Monday, November 22, 2021 at St. Joseph’s Catholic Church. Visitation from 9:00 a.m. to 10:00 a.m., Recitation of the Rosary at 10:00 a.m. followed by the Mass of Christian Burial at 10:30 a.m., interment will follow at St. Peter’s Catholic Cemetery in Fresno. Family and friends are invited to a catered luncheon to be held at the VFW Hall in Firebaugh after the internment. .
Thank you to Fr. Rayanna Pudota and Linda Antunez from St. Joseph’s Catholic Church for rushing to the hospital to administer the sacraments of Anointing of the Sick and Eucharist to Lily.
Thank you to all the doctors who took care of Lily over the years: Kevin Kodama, Natalya Mally, William Holmes, Dalpinder Sandhu, Kuldeep Gill, Dexter Estrada, Himmat Gill, and William Hinton.
Very special thanks to the doctors and staff at Fresno Heart & Surgical Hospital, especially, Dr. Patrick MacMillan, and nurse, Jordan, who helped guide us through the palliative care and treatment process for Lily. Our family is eternally grateful to you.
Donations may be made in Lily’s name to Catholic Charities, 149 N Fulton St, Fresno CA 93701, Valley Children’s Hospital, 9300 Valley Children’s Place, Madera CA 93636, and San Joaquin Memorial High School, 1406 N Fresno St, Fresno CA 93703.
Valley Children's Hospital
9300 Valley Children's Place, Madera CA 93636
Web: http://valleychildrens.org
Catholic Charities
149 North Fulton, Fresno CA 93701
San Joaquin Memorial High School
1406 N. Fresno Street, Fresno CA 93703
Tel: 1-559-268-9251
Web: http://sjmhs.org