Omar "Mai" De Leon

MISSION - Omar De Leon, 89, of Mission, Texas passed away peacefully at Mission Regional Medical Center on August 23, 2019, with his family by his side.
Mai was born March 5, 1930, in Mission, Texas to the late Jose and Maria C. De Leon. At age 16 he joined the U.S. Army and served in post World War II Guam doing clean up and making sure the Japanese that were still on the island surrendered.
After his time in the army, he traveled to Colorado and California where he would get married and raise a family in Merced, California. After the death of his wife, Elena, he returned to Mission and lived with his daughter Delia, his son-in-law Roland and grandson Noah.
Omar, known as "Mai", loved gardening. He would spend a good part of the day outdoors working in his garden. Mai also looked forward to summers when he would return to California to visit family and friends.
He is preceded in death by his brothers, Leonel Rodriguez, Abel and Sabas De Leon; and his sisters Modesta Cavazos, Emma Solis, Olivia Garcia, and Marica De Leon.
Mai is survived by his sons, James and Mike De Leon; his daughters, Mary (Manuel) Ramirez and Delia (Rolando) Gil; five grandchildren; several great-grandchildren; a brother, Ernesto De Leon; a sister, Olivia Castro; and numerous nieces and nephews.
Visitation will be held from 5 to 9 p.m., with 7 p.m. Military Honors, conducted by V.F. W. Post 7473 of Elsa, followed by recitation of the Holy Rosary Wednesday, August 28, 2019, at Memorial Funeral Home in San Juan. A funeral mass will take place at 3 p.m., Thursday, August 29, 2019, at Our Lady of Guadalupe Catholic Church in Mission. Reception immediately following mass at El Patio in Mission. All services conclude after the mass.
Mai will be dearly missed by all and never forgotten.
Funeral services are under the direction of Memorial Funeral Home in San Juan