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Loving Wife, Mother, Grandmother, Sister, & Friend

October 23, 1938 - October 13, 2024

Loving Wife, Mother, Grandmother, Sister, & Friend

October 23, 1938 - October 13, 2024

" La vida de mi Abuelita Chilo "

Life in Colotlán

Maria Auxillo Sanchez-Chavez was born on October 23, 1938 on a ranch on the outskirts of the Pueblo de Colotlán, Jalisco, Mexico. In our family, she goes by the nickname, Chilo. Her parents were Arnulfo Chavez and Guadalupe Escobedo-Chavez. Her father worked on the ranch but sent Chilo and siblings to the nearest school about an hour away. She went to school up until the third grade but dropped out because of the long commute they would have to take either on foot or by donkey and because her father needed help working in the fields. By the age of thirteen, her family moved to Ciudad Juárez, Chihuahua in search of better opportunities. She recalls taking a day-long train ride with her family including: Angelita, Salvador, Rosa, Ester, and Mina.

Teenage Years in Juarez

Public schools in Juarez were overbooked with locals, therefore there was no room for outsiders to attend. Fed up with the lack of education available, Chilo decided to enter the working field. To this day, she wishes that she could have received more of an education but is thankful for the path that fate chose. There was a wide variety of occupations that Chilo would try out from the ages of thirteen to twenty such as babysitting or cleaning homes. At that time, Chilo's parents were close friends with Alfredo and Rufina Sanchez since their days in Colotlán. It was through them that Chilo was introduced to her future husband, Baudelio Sanchez, .

Chilo's parents sent her to assist at the Sanchez family household. While spending time there, Baudelio and Chilo never really paid much attention to each other. It wasn't until Chilo was hired by an American family across the border in El Paso, Texas that they began dating. She would walk across the border on Monday morning and work for the family until Sunday morning, after which she would walk back to Juarez to spend the day with her own family. In between her stops to and from work, she would visit the Sanchez family and sure enough Baudelio was there courting with every opportunity available. With both parent's blessings they became a happy couple.

Married LIfe in sacramento

In 1956, Baudelio moved to Sacramento, CA to work alongside other family members. During this time period, Chilo would keep in touch with him by exchanging letters through the mail. The long distance was challenging but it was their strong love and devotion to be together that kept them strong. After two years of long distance dating, they finally tied the knot and got married on Valentine’s Day, February 14, 1958. Baudelio had a visitor's visa to work in the U.S. and was ready to bring his new wife with him back to Sacramento. Initially, the immigration office denied Chilo’s visa request due to the fact that they were newly-wed. Chilo was devastated to hear this news but knew that she wanted to cross legally and was willing to wait. To her surprise, she didn't have to wait too long. In the late Spring of 1958, Chilo was approved for a visa and moved to Sacramento to begin the next chapter of her life.

Chilo fell in love with her new life in America with Baudelio and was fortunate to start a family of her own. On July 2, 1959, their first child, Sylvia, was born. From the years 1960 through 1970, they would bring into this world five more children: Teresa (Teri), Alejandro (Alex), José Joel (Joey), Veronica, and Laura (Lori) Amelia. Baudelio was working full-time jobs and therefore preferred having Chilo stay at home to take care of the kids. In the early years, she worked part-time jobs from babysitting, to house cleaning, and even as a farm worker picking tomatoes in Dixon, CA. By the time their youngest child, Laura, was five years old, Chilo entered the work field but as full-time.

Living THe American Dream

In 1976, Chilo and Baudelio became official U.S. citizens in the year of our country’s bi-centenial celebration. She brought along her Tia Francis Flores to be their witness. Eventually, Chilo secured a full-time career with the Campbell Soup Cannery in Sacramento starting in 1978 and retiring in 2001. In the early 70's, her parents and siblings moved from Mexico to Sacramento. Chilo became involved with her kid's education and was extremely proud of them for graduating high school and college. Chilo's greatest memories include the many vactions to Mexico City, Ixtapa, Puerto Vallerto, Juarez, and more. In 1990, Chilo and her family moved from their East Sacramento house on 33rd Street to their newly built 2-story home in the suburbs of Elk Grove. By this time, she was very content with all the accomplishments made for herself and her family making her American Dream feel complete.

Celebrations admist heartache

In October 1993, Chilo and Baudelio celebrated the marriage of Jose Joel to Estella. Later that year, Veronica and Bernardo became engaged on New Years Eve. Sadly, Chilo's heart was broken on October 3, 1994, with the passing of her husband, Baudelio, due to cancer. In 1995, Chilo walked her daughter down the isle as Veronica and Bernardo finally got married.

Abuelita

Chilo often stated that Baudelio passed away too soon and left an unexpected emptiness in their hearts.Fortunately, this emptiness was soon filled by the birth of Chilo’s first grandson, Jose Baudelio, in August 1995. Between the following years of 1996 to 2008, eight more grandchildren were born: Esteban, Julio, Natalia, Nicolas, Juancarlos, Marina, Rosa, and Lucas. Chilo was very proud of the success of her kids and grandchildren both in their careers and education. Even though her education was cut short, she often stated that she too went to University by extension of her grandkids.

Chilo was proud of her Mexican culture and often missed her homeland. She was always surrounded by friends and family and loved to dance at parties. As an active member of the community, she would volunteer at schools and churches as well as proudly cast her vote at every election. She enjoyed cooking traditional Mexican dishes such as enchiladas, sopes, menudo, and chiles rellenos. Her favorite music was both Ranchera and Norteño as it gave her nostalgia from her days in El Paso.

Traveling was one her favorite things to do including trips to: Texas, Arizona, Las Vegas, Hawaii, Mexico, Italy, France, Spain, Croatia and of course Disney Land. She loved wearing blouses purchased from her trips to Jalisco along with her Hurache sandals. She had elegant fashion styles with passion for make-up, jewelry, and keeping up with the latest hair trends. She not only enjoyed watching her telenovelas but also loved watching American movies and celebrities such as: Elvis, The Beatles, Michael Jackson, Marc Anthony, and Patrick Swayze. Her pride and joy was always her family and friends. In the final days, it was the love from her family and friends that gave her much comfort.

Short Biography "La Vida De Mi Abuelita Chilo"

Written by Jose B. Sanchez

Edited by Jose Joel Sanchez

October 2024

Loving Wife, Mother, Grandmother, Sister, & Friend

Loving Wife, Mother, Grandmother, Sister, & Friend

" La vida de mi Abuelita Chilo "

Life in Colotlán

Teenage Years in Juarez

Married LIfe in sacramento

Living THe American Dream

Celebrations admist heartache

Abuelita

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