Obituary for Elwood E. Escobar
Elwood E. Escobar entered into rest on August 24, 2024. He was 89 years old. Born to Joaquin and Mary Escobar on April 4, 1935, in the family home and raised in Gustine, CA. He passed away peacefully at his home in Denair, CA. He is survived by his wife of almost 40 years, Cherie Escobar, his children, Mardie Caldwell, Michael Escobar (Lyra), Steve Escobar, Sandy Escobar Schmidt, John Escobar, Anne Frost (Michael), Alison Bryson (David), his grandchildren, Cory Pavan, Julia Pavan, James Escobar, Alexandar Joaquin (AJ) Escobar, Tiffany Frisa-Farrahkon (Moe), Bradley Frisa, Darlene LeVan (Nick), Luke Frost (Savannah), Mary Frost Avila (Matthew), Sara Frost, Joy Frost, Kane Bryson, Kase Bryson and great-grandchildren, Ellie, Louis James, Saraya, Aurion and Lillian. He was preceded in death by parents, infant brother Ivan, sister Bernadine, brother-in-law Ray Langford and grandson Sammy Schmidt.
Elwood served our country in the Army. He completed basic training at Fort Ord in Monterey County, then served in Berlin, Germany during the cold war. He was a bugler and had to get up in the early hours to wake the camp by playing Reveille and ending the day with Taps. He enjoyed German beer and always tried to see if he could order it any where he went.
He married Elaine Souza and together they had five children. He worked and eventually became part owner of Souza’s Propane & Furniture for many years in Turlock.
He was a member of Sacred Heart Parish in Turlock and was on the church building committee in the late 1960’s to its final completion in 1972. The church that stands today is the one he helped design and fund.
In 1983, he met Grandma Allison and “Blue Eyes” while he sold them a tv and recliner. He courted Cherie and her two daughters and they married on November 10, 1984.
Elwood knew that Cherie and the girls came with cows. During their courtship, Cherie & the girls showed cattle at multiple fairs during the summer. Elwood jumped right in by helping halter break, wash cows and clipping cows. He was our personal chef, cooking for us on a griddle in the feed alley wherever we went. We found out he could nap anywhere, even in a folding chair. Together they enjoyed raising registered Shorthorns and commercial beef cattle on their ranch. He enjoyed tending to the cattle, riding horses, gathering and working cattle. He would help other cattleman during their brandings.
Elwood made friends everywhere he went. He was an excellent salesman; he could sell a snow cone to an eskimo. He could talk to you about anything. He enjoyed the Denair community and always strived to make it a safer place to live. In the 90’s, he led the community to fundraise and staff the Denair’s Sheriff ‘s Substation for many years. For 23 years, he served as an appointed Fire Commissioner for the Denair Volunteer Fire Department. He rallied for grants and funding to obtain much needed equipment, trucks and a full-time paid staff member.
Elwood was an entrepreneur. For many years, they owned and operated Big Red Carpet Cleaning. They sold that business and started another business selling Monitor kerosene heaters. He sold heaters at the Stanislaus County Fair during a heat wave, which was truly impressive.
Elwood was a man of faith. Once he retired, he became a Eucharistic minister. His ministry was taking communion, praying and visiting with the Catholic home bound. He truly enjoyed spending time with people that didn’t have anyone to visit them.
Elwood worked part time at several of the local mortuaries. Because of his devotion to our Blessed Mother, he led rosaries at funerals. It was very important to him to make sure he explained the meaning of the rosary for everyone to understand.
One of his most memorable duties was to retrieve military personnel that died in active duty from the airport. One particular soldier had a full police escort from San Francisco to Hughson, CA. Every roadway was blocked off on his route the entire way. He was so honored to be the one bringing our fallen local military to their final resting place. He wanted our military and veterans to be fully taken care of and respected.
He enjoyed his Catholic faith and wanted to share it with others. A long time parishioner at Sacred Heart Church, he taught his grandkids – and many more children - how to serve as altar servers. In the last 10 years, he attended All Saints University Parish in Turlock.
In lieu of flowers, please make a donation in Elwood’s memory to the Building Fund at All Saints University Parish, 4040 McKenna Drive, Turlock, CA 95382 or to the Denair Volunteer Fire Department, P.O. Box 262, Denair, CA 95316