Jesse Edward Sanchez Obituary - Visitation & Funeral Information

Obituary 'Jesse Edward Sanchez was born in San Jose, California on Christmas Day, 1941. He grew up working in the fields and then helping with his mother’s Mexican restaurant. After graduating from Lincoln High School he saved up and bought a motorcycle and a small billiard bar named ‘The Coffee Cup’. He had to leave all of it behind when he was drafted to fight in Vietnam. Because he was drafted very late in the war, by the time he was out of basic training the government had committed to not sending anymore troops, so he spent the rest of his enlistment in Kansas. After the war ended he moved back home with his first wife Sharon and started a food truck business he named the ‘South Valley Food Service’. It was one of the first food truck businesses to cater to the many field workers picking garlic all over the outskirts of Gilroy. The business flourished from one to several food trucks. He bought some property in San Martin, including a couple horses, some chickens, two dogs and a boat to waterski on nearby Lake Coyote. After his first marriage ended Jesse converted from Catholicism to evangelical Christianity by his sister Bea, a recent convert herself. He would embrace evangelical Christianity passionately for the rest of his life. He hired a fellow newly converted evangelical, Joyce Valdez, who answered a want ad he posted in the local paper for help working on the food trucks. He had to sell the house and the boat after the divorce but he could finally start the family he had always dreamed of having. Joyce and Jesse married and had three children, Jesse, Eli and Briana. When other food trucks started appearing on Jesse’s daily route the competition was aggressive, and eventually pushed Jesse to change his career path. It was also around this time that he was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease. Jesse found a new career path as a custodian at Britton middle school in Morgan Hill. Where he was beloved by all. His hard work ethic made people take notice and appreciate him. He would work there until retirement. Where he was given many goodbye gifts and sorry to see you go cards. His Parkinson's was starting to get the better of him. He loved science fiction movies, the music of Don Francisco and the hottest chiles. Parkinson’s disease robbed him of many good years of his life, but through it all he never lost faith with his religion or his love of God. He truly wanted, more than anything for himself, to save the souls of everyone he met. He has finally gone home to the place he’s longed to be, after a long, often hard, road he is at peace. Jesse is survived by his sons Jesse and Eli, his daughter Briana, and his granddaughter Sydney.' Memorial Service at Bethel Church of San Jose 1201 S Winchester Blvd, San Jose, CA 95128 Starts at 1pm To send flowers to the family or plant a tree in memory of Jesse Edward Sanchez, please visit our floral store.

Jesse Edward Sanchez

December 25, 1941 - February 18, 2020