Ramona Maganas

Ramona Chavollo Maganas, 91, of Grandview went to be with her Lord on Tuesday, August 30, 2016. Ramona passed away at home with her children, grandchildren and great grandchildren by her side. 

Ramona was born on August 12, 1925 in Fort Morgan, Colorado to Daniel and Delfina Chavollo. She spent her early years in Fort Morgan.  At the age of six, her parents decided to move their family to San Luis Potosi in Mexico.  It took the family 3 years to reach their destination, first traveling by automobile and then by wagon train stopping along the way for periods of time to work to make money to continue on to their destination.  She would recollect how her mom and dad would actually build huts made out of mud and grass as temporary homes.  In 1940, her parents decided it was time to return to the United States and upon their return mom worked as a nanny and a housekeeper for a family in Brownsville, Texas.

In 1944, she met Alonzo Maganas while working in the cotton fields in Robstown, Texas.   Mom told us kids, that after a day of working in the fields she was sitting in the common area of the campsite watching others eating watermelon when from afar she noticed dad looking her way raising a slice of watermelon towards her and winked. That was all it took – starting the next day they picked cotton side by side and after an eight week courtship they married in Brownfield, Texas on November 16, 1944. They made their home in Weslaco and then Brownsville, Texas.  

1946 was the first of many times that Ramona and her husband Alonzo and their small family began migrating between the states of Texas, California and Washington.  She would recollect the hardships and difficulties that at times would take place while traveling with their small children but also cherishes the fact that she and dad developed lifelong friendships with other families who were traveling with them.  In 1960, mom and dad made Grandview their permanent home for their family so their children would not have to attend different schools during the school year.  Mom and dad lived on their ranch for 30 years and took pride in their home making it beautiful inside and out.  Many birthdays, baptism celebrations and weddings took place at their home.  As Ramona and Alonzo became older, they realized the ranch was a little too much to handle so they sold the property and in 1990 built a home in the west side of Grandview where they could live next door to their daughter Rosalinda. 

Over the years Ramona worked alongside with her husband and children in agriculture work and in 1981 began her career as a Daycare teacher for Washington State Migrant Council. Mom loved working with children!!  She looked forward to work every day and loved the fact that she was helping nurture new generations of children and developed wonderful friendships with her co-workers.  Even after retiring in 1992, many children who were once her students would see her and greet her as “Teacher Ramona”.  Even to this day, she is still their beloved “Teacher Ramona”.  

 1992 brought a new chapter in Ramona’s life: she made the decision to retire to care for her grandson Ryan.  On the day Ryan was born, she quit her habit of smoking for the past 48 years “cold turkey”.  Her determination to never again smoke was amazing and she never faltered.  Ramona loved the fact the she was spending more time with her husband and all of her children and grandchildren.

Mom loved working in her yard.  Springtime was the best time for her – she loved going to different nurseries and picking out flowers and plants to place in her yard.  She would spend hours planting and loved the time in the morning watering all her beautiful flowers and watching them grow.  She also enjoyed attending public auctions with dad to see what “treasures” she could find.  Her latest hobby was coloring.  She loved coloring and would spend time every day sitting in her chair or at the table working on her coloring books.  She also loved cooking for her family and during the Christmas season making her wonderful tamales to share with the family and friends.  You could always find “burritos” on the stove when you went to mom’s house and she would be happy to cook something for her children and grandchildren if they asked her.  Her grandson Ryan would at times ask her to make her burritos to take for lunch and she would always end up making like a dozen!  She cooked her burritos every day until the day she was hospitalized.

She also had a love for animals and there was always a family pet.  Her constant companion and ray of sunshine for the last 12 years was her dog Chiquita.  Chiqi was her spoiled baby and mom showered her treats and love.  Chiqi loved mom so much and never left her side and was by mom’s side up until the time of her death. 

Ramona was a member of Blessed Sacrament Catholic Church in Grandview and sang in the Spanish choir. She attended Mass every Sunday and throughout the years she was a member of the Accion Catolica Group, the Guadalupanas and was a Crusillista.  She loved to volunteer her time to her parish as a Eucharistic minister and would always help prepare meals for funeral luncheons when needed.  Her faith in God was so strong that she read the Bible every day, meditated on daily scriptures, prayed the rosary twice a day and watched Mass on EWTN every day when she could no longer attend Mass at church.  

She was a wonderful and loving wife, mother, grandmother, great grandmother and great great grandmother.  She loved her grandkids with all her heart! She cherished her family and loved being a part of their lives.  You could always count on mom to help out with kids and help us cook for special occasions.  We all looked up to her for guidance and support.  She instilled in her children to work hard in school, achieve our goals, to love your family and friends and most importantly have a strong faith in God. 

Ramona is survived by her six children and their families:  Rosalinda (Carlos) Diaz, Marta (Mont) Barnes, Theresa (Tim) Moore, Daniel Maganas, Juan Pablo Maganas and Alonzo (Yolanda) Maganas Jr.; fourteen grandchildren; twenty-five great grandchildren; and twelve great-great grandchildren. She is preceded in death by her husband Alonzo, daughter Maria de la Paz, son Jose Armando, parents Daniel and Delfina, her sisters Adela and Maria and brothers Juan and Antonio. 

We would like to thank Marcie Koch for being a wonderful friend and caregiver to mom.  We would also like to thank Dr. Anna Madej, the staff at Kadlac Regional Medical Center where the physicians and nursing staff treated mom with so much respect and tenderness; and last but not least Heartlinks Hospice – who in our time of need were there for mom and our family.

In addition, we would like to thank all of mom’s friends who visited her at the hospital and at her home up until the day she passed.  The look of mom’s face turned to joy every time someone came to visit her. 

The tremendous support from her friends and family has given us much strength and comfort during this difficult time. 

“Momma, thank you for all the love, care and support given to us and our children.  We love you and will miss you tremendously but at the same time are truly happy that you are at peace, up in Heaven with Dad and Joe and being our Guardian Angels from above.”

Viewing and visitation will be held on Tuesday, Sept. 6, 2016 from 2 to 8 p.m. with a Rosary to be recited at 6 p.m. at Smith Funeral Home in Grandview, WA.  Mass of Christian Burial will be held Wednesday, Sept. 7, 2016 at 10:00 a.m. at Blessed Sacrament Catholic Church in Grandview, WA. with burial to follow at the Grandview Cemetery.  Those wishing to sign Ramona’s online memorial book may do so at www.funeralhomesmith.com Smith Funeral Home Grandview in care of arrangements.

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