Ernesto Cantu

ERNESTO J. CANTU EDINBURG – Ernesto J. Cantu, 80, died Sunday, May 17, 2015, at his residence in Edinburg. He is preceded in death by his parents, Jesus and Regina Cantu; and five siblings Maria Larralde, Lydia Villarreal, Delia Palacios, Emma Pierce and Ruben Cantu. Mr. Cantu is survived by his wife of 59 1/2 years, Delia G. Cantu, of Edinburg; three daughters, Nelda Iris (Paul) Ogdee, Marissa Iselda (Ramon III) Vega, both of Edinburg, Clarissa Imelda (Pete) Clark, of Fayetteville, AR; and eight grandchildren, Paul Anthony and Aaron Matthew Ogdee, Olivia Nicole, Michael Alan, Justin Alexander and Lauren Alexis Vega, Brandon Bradstreet and Preston Cooper Clark. Mr. Cantu was a member of Sacred Heart Catholic Church and served as past parish council president. He was a graduate of Edinburg High School and attended both Pan American University and Texas A&M University. He proudly served his country in the U.S. Army. He was an educator, a local businessman, and the owner of Homes by E.J. Cantu Construction Co. He was a lifelong Edinburg Bobcat football fan and most recently, a Robert Vela SaberCat fan. He instilled the values of education, work and discipline to his daughters and was proud that they are all college graduates. Most recently, his pride and joy were his 8 grandchildren. He loved attending their sporting events, music concerts, school plays and any other functions they had. Visitation will be held from 5 to 9 p.m., with a 7 p.m. rosary today, May 19, 2015, at Memorial Funeral Home, 208 East Canton in Edinburg. Funeral service will take place at 1:30 p.m. Wednesday, May 20, 2015, at Sacred Heart Catholic Church in Edinburg. Interment will follow at Rio Grande Valley State Veterans Cemetery in Mission. Military honors will be conducted by American Legion Post 93 of Mission. Serving as pallbearers are Adolfo Cantu, Donicio Cantu Jr., Ruben Hector Cantu, Beto Anzaldua, Joe Dominguez, Benito Estimbo, Vicente Estevis, Jaime Gomez, Pete Sanchez and Arnulfo Villarreal. Honorary pallbearers are his friends, relatives, past employees, and clients. In lieu of flowers, the family asks that you make a donation to the Sacred Heart Catholic Church Building Fund, or the charity of your choice. The family would like to thank the friends and relatives for the visits, prayers and kind words during this difficult time. They would also like to thank the staff at McAllen Heart Hospital for their exemplary services. Funeral services are under the direction of Memorial Funeral Home in Edinburg.