Anita V. Nava

Our beloved Matriarch, our Queen, and the last of the original elder Nava generation in Santa Paula has gone home to be with her Maker. Anita passed away peacefully at 102 years old, in her cherished home across the street from Our Lady of Guadalupe Church — the church she served and loved for more than 70 years. Anita was a devoted woman of faith, deep values, rich culture, and an unwavering moral compass that guided us all. She modeled everything holy and good, always ready with stern, but loving advice about faith and kindness.

As a homemaker, she raised six children along with two grandchildren. She provided lifelong support to our father, Marcelino S. Nava, who was a hard-working rancher. She was born on July 17, 1924 in San Francisco del Rincón, Guanajuato, Mexico, to José de Jesús and María de Jesús (Sánchez) Villalpando. She was the eldest of her three siblings: brother Servando Villalpando, sister María de la Luz Martínez (Francisco), and brother Refugio Villalpando. Our parents came to Santa Paula in the mid-1940s, seeking a life among relatives and a place to build family and something lasting.

Anita was preceded in death by her husband, Marcelino S. Nava, and her twin sons, Jarvis and Marcelino Jr. She leaves behind four children — James Nava (Isabel), Delia Martinez (Juan), Maria E. Saiz, and Raymond E. Nava — along with two grandchildren she lovingly raised as her own, Fernando Garcia and Angelique Nava Dryden. She is also survived by 19 grandchildren, 40 great-grandchildren, and 14 great-great-grandchildren — a legacy as large as the love she gave.

Anita will be remembered by this community for far more than her decades by the church's side. As a devoted parishioner and master teacher, she taught catechism to generations of children, helped organize the first “Guadalupanas," led the weekly food sales and fundraising Jamaicas in the parish hall, lent her beautiful voice to the church choir, and served as a mass lector. Her volunteer spirit reached beyond the church as well — she was a volunteer with the newly developed WIC program, and other preventive health programs in the community. She received numerous honors and recognitions, from the Archdiocese level all the way to the Pope in Rome. Her home across the street from the church became a trusted source for parishioners seeking guidance on mass schedules, confessions, baptisms, weddings, confirmations and premarital classes, to name a few.

Her family will carry her legacy, her faith, and her boundless love of family forward, finding comfort in knowing that her spirit lives on in each of us. Her smile, her sense of humor, and her fierce pride in her family and culture are woven into everyone who knew and loved her.

Our family extends its deepest gratitude to our mother’s devoted and committed caregivers…affectionately referred to as my “Dream Team”: Cinthya Galicia (8yrs), MariCarmen del Moral (5yrs), Lourdes Tamayo (4-1/2yrs), and Camerina Gonzalez (6yrs). Their collaboration working as a team, extraordinary care, unwavering patience, and deep affection have been priceless. They brought immense comfort and joy to our mother during her final years.