Kathleen Carol Garcia-Horlor OBITUARY

Kathleen Carol Garcia-Horlor OBITUARY

On April 29, 2025, Kathleen Carol Garcia-Horlor sadly ed away of liver cancer. She was surrounded by loved ones in her final moments. Her sudden ing has deeply saddened and shocked her family and friends. She will be deeply missed by those who loved her.

Born in 1953, she was the daughter of Mexican American parents, Felix and Grace Garcia. She, like her parents, was a lifelong San Diegan. Her maternal roots dated back to Spanish cavalry officer, Francisco Xavier Sepulveda, who helped settle San Diego, as well as Los Angeles, in the late 18th century. Her ancestors through Francisco became prominent Californio ranchers, who received land grants that encomed most of Southern California and held important government posts, including the first Alcalde de Los Angeles (Mayor), Jose Antonio Andres Sepulveda. Her family’s legacy still exists today, with Sepulveda Boulevard in Los Angeles continuing to bear their family name. She was very proud of her family’s contributions to her beloved California. Kathleen was also fiercely proud of her Indigenous roots, which included multiple Mexican and American nations, such as the Yaqui, Purépecha, and others. Her pride in her Mexican ancestry was fundamental in her ionate of the poor and disenfranchised.

As a teenager, Kathleen attended Cathedral High School, where priests and nuns instilled her with a deep appreciation for art, literature, and language, which helped foster her talent for photography. The all-girls student body helped promote her sense of female solidarity that fueled her strong of women’s rights.

After finishing her senior year at St. Augustine High School, Kathleen attended San Diego State University, where she earned her B.A. and M.A. in education. During her 25 years of teaching, she taught 3rd grade at Otay Elementary School and kindergarten and 1st grade at Rohr Elementary School. Over the years, she used her knowledge of teaching theory, child development, learning disabilities, and English as a second language to help hundreds of students. She was beloved by her students, their parents, and her colleagues. Being a firm believer in the importance of education and teacher’s rights, she mentored new teachers, advised her colleagues, and was a teacher’s union representative. She worked tirelessly to obtain the cooperation of teachers, parents, and s to create a healthy educational environment for everyone. When she retired, students, parents, and colleagues were very sad to see her go.

Kathleen was a long-time member of the First Unitarian Universalist Church of San Diego. She was a member of the board, a member of the search committee for a new minister, was active in the church’s religious education program, and helped establish the First Unitarian Universalist Church of San Diego-South Bay. She was very active in her church’s social justice groups that aided the homeless, immigrant, and LGBTQ communities, helped created a committee to racially integrate the church, helped create a group for mixed race families like her own, and worked in outreach to aid people in need.

Kathleen had a profound love for nature, especially the sea. She regularly enjoyed walks at Silver Strand Beach and La Jolla Shores and was a long-time member of the San Diego Zoo. She was a long-time member of KPBS and an avid viewer of their foreign programming. Kathleen had an immense love of French and British cinema and television. She had a deep love of opera and regularly attended showings of the Metropolitan Opera at local movie theaters. She had a deep ion for coffee and frequented her favorite coffee shop, Donny’s Café in Bonita, where she was beloved by the owners and fellow patrons. As an avid sports fan, she always cheered for her beloved Padres and loved having a beer and hotdog at the ballpark. Influenced by her hockey loving husband, she became a devoted fan of the Montreal Canadiens and never missed a game broadcast. She was a lover of the martial arts and practiced Tai Chi.

Kathleen would meet her husband future husband, Barry, while attending a Tai Chi class. The two fell in love and married in 1983. Their wedding was a multicultural affair that showcased their love of each other’s heritage. At their wedding, Barry dawned his traditional Scottish dress kilt and the reception featured a bagpiper, a mariachi band, and a Latino rock group. The guests enjoyed the multicultural festivities so much that over the years they were determined to find an excuse to do it all over again. In 1991, Kathleen gave birth prematurely to their beloved only child, ElizaGrace. Kathleen was immensely proud to be the mother of her talented and loving daughter. She ed her daughter in her endeavors by being a soccer team mom, helping to make dance and talent show costumes, attending numerous recitals, chaperoning Girl Scout events, going to art shows, and enrolling her daughter in cooking classes. Kathleen perpetually bragged about her daughter moving to New York City and becoming a professionally trained chef at one of the city’s top culinary schools. Kathleen and Barry celebrated their 30th anniversary with a trip to Paris, a city they both loved immensely and spent a lifetime dreaming of visiting. They couple were married for 42 years.

Kathleen is survived by her husband, Barry, a retired college professor, daughter, ElizaGrace, brothers, Patrick and Michael, numerous nieces and nephews and extended family across the world, all of whom loved her dearly. Through hard work and determination, she came a very long way from her humble beginnings in Barrio Logan. Vaya con Dios amor. Memorial services will be held at Greenwood Memorial Park 4300 Imperial Ave., San Diego, CA 92113 on Saturday June 14th from 1-2pm on the patio of the main mortuary building with a reception to follow from 2-5pm in the adjacent hall where refreshments will be served. In lieu of flowers, please donate in her name to the American Cancer Society, Stand Up To Cancer, and charities that the poor, disenfranchised, and oppressed.