Hortencia H. Chapa

Therefore, we do not give up, but even if the man we are outside is wasting away, certainly the man we are inside is being renewed from day to day. For though the tribulation is momentary and light, it works out for us a glory that is of more and more surpassing greatness and is everlasting; while we keep our eyes, not on the things seen, but on the things unseen. For the things seen are temporary, but the things unseen are everlasting.

2 Corinthians 4: 16-18

On March 11th at 8 a.m., on a clear, gentle spring day after days of rain and storms, our mother left this world at 91, surrounded by her family.

She taught the four of us, her three daughters, and her son, how to stand strong, no matter what life brought. She showed us how to be resourceful and responsible, and to take action rather than wait for life to happen; most of all, she taught us about the Creator who made all things. Her faith and zeal for Jehovah weren't just words; they were something she lived, breathed, and passed on to us in every lesson, every prayer, every moment of guidance.

She loved the simple and beautiful things of this world: a good home-cooked meal, her garden and fruit trees, where she coaxed life from the soil; her chickens; and sharing the word of God with anyone willing to listen...and to those who wouldn't. (lol) These were the places where her heart felt most at home.

Though our hearts are heavy, we know she left this world the same way she lived it, living life on her terms. She was surrounded by family, love, wrapped in faith, and held by the Creator she trusted with her whole being.

Her strength will live on within us.

Her teachings will continue to live through us.

Our love for our mother will never leave us!

She is survived by her children: Diana Stoeltje, Joe Chapa (Elsa), Tency Garcia (Marc), and Angie M. Payne (Vic); her twelve grandchildren; her ten great-grandchildren; her brothers Manuel Jr. and David Herrera; and her sister Sarah Paez.

She was preceded in death by her husband, José S. Chapa; her parents, Manuel and Guadalupe Herrera; her brothers, Johnny, Ray, and Jesse Herrera and her beloved granddaughter, Sabrina Danielle Garcia.

Visitation will be Sunday, March 22, 2026 from 2:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. at Tres Hewell Mortuary Chapel. Funeral service will be Monday, March 23, 2026, at 1:00 p.m. at Tres Hewell Mortuary Chapel with Brother Raul Ramirez officiating. Burial will follow at San Geronimo Cemetery.