Gecila Fuentes

Gecila was born on May 21, 1942 in the City of Paranaque, Philippines to  Franciso Sr. and Felicidad Samonte.  She had 3 brothers, Felix, Lamberto, and Francisco Jr. and 2 sisters, Gloria and Violeta.

Gecila attended high school at St. Paul and went to college at the University of the Philippines College of Nursing.  She graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Nursing in 1963. After graduating from college, she worked at the Philippine General Hospital in Manila.  She participated in the exchange nursing program between the United States (US) and Philippines.  She moved to the US in 1964, stayed in Rochester, Minnesota as a nurse for two years.  She returned to the Philippines for a year and then migrated to Vancouver, Canada where she worked at the Veterans Hospital.

In 1970, while in Vancouver, Gecila met her future husband, Jorge, who lived in Seattle at the time.  After Canada, she made her move to Los Angeles and worked at Cedars Sinai.  Jorge and Gecila kept in touch as they both relocated to the area and started dating.  They were married on September 25, 1971 at the Immaculate Heart of Mary Church in Los Angeles and settled in La Palma.  They relocated to their current residence in Yorba Linda.  She then started work at Kaiser in Anaheim in 1982 where she worked until retirement in 2006.   

Gecila was blessed with twin children, Jenn and Joe, and a proud grandmother to two grandkids, Brayden (14)  and Samantha (11).

Gecila had several hobbies and interests that included singing, traveling, pottery, exercising, ballroom dancing, playing cards at the casino, mahjong, and being very active in the Catholic community.   She loved her friends, family, and faith and these were the foundations of her life. She was outgoing and spread her joy and blessings with all around her.

May she rest in eternal peace.