Manuel Mata Barajas
Manuel Mata Barajas, a loving husband, father, grandfather, great-grandfather, brother, and friend, passed away on May 11, 2016. He was surrounded by his family, who loved him dearly. Manuel was born on June 17, 1937 in Aguascalientes, Mexico, to Agnes (Anita) Mata and Geronimo Barajas. He was the oldest of their 4 children: Jose, Raquel L., and Esperanza. His mother later remarried to Antonio Guevara and had 3 more children: Theresa, Ana, and George. His father also had 6 other children: Juan Manuel, Isias, Raquel B., Cuca, Sanjuana, and Geronimo. He was married to Socorro Vasquez, the love of his life, on April 11, 1958 and they had 4 children together: Manuel Jr., Ralph, David, and Gina.
Manuel was known for being the owner of the Rose Café on the Mesa for the past 36 years. He took great pride in his restaurant. Every morning, he showed up for work at 6 a.m. to get the restaurant ready to open for breakfast and would often times still be working past 5 p.m. The restaurant was his dream and he worked very hard to make sure that it was a success.
Manuel was preceded in death by his wife of 55 years, Socorro, his parents, his sisters Raquel L. and Theresa and brother Juan Manuel. He is survived by his children: Manuel Jr. (Deborah), Ralph, David, and Gina; his grandchildren Raymond, Greg, Manuel III, Rosanna, Angelique, Vanessa, Krystal, and Joseph; his great-grandchildren: Leanna, Nicholas, Kristian, Sienna, Isiah, Aliyah, Noah, Milania, Daniel, Stella, Kayla, and Kamaryn; his siblings: Jose, Esperanza, Ana, George, Isias, Raquel B., Cuca, Sanjuana, and Geronimo; and countless other family, friends, and loyal customers of his restaurant.
The family would like to thank his doctor of many years, Dr. Byers, the Cancer Center of Santa Barbara and Dr. Woliver and his oncology nurses, Santa Barbara Cottage Hospital, and Dr. Sager and the MICU nurses and doctors who took such great care of him, especially in his final days. We appreciate all of the hard work and care you took in caring for Manuel.
The Rosary will take place on Friday, June 17 at 7 p.m. at Holy Cross Church on Cliff Drive. Services will be Saturday June 18 at 10 a.m. at Holy Cross, with a reception to follow for family and friends.