Maria T Garcia
Celebration of Life
March 12, 2025
2:30pm to 6pm
Louise Lowry Center
Maria T Garcia ( Terri, MG), a beloved wife, mother, grandmother, and great-grandmother, passed away a week before she was to turn 80 on February 6, 2025. Born on February 13, 1945, to Oralia Cardona Escobar Silva of Santa Barbara and Everardo Frias Silva of San Francisco by way of Mexico, Maria grew up in Santa Barbara, Goleta and San Fernando, CA. She met the love of her life, Harold V.Garcia, at a Fourth of July beach party with a friend, and they married on July 17, 1965. Together, they raised three children—Andrea, Victor, and Delfina. She loved her eight grandchildren and her five great-grandchildren. In 1963 graduated from Santa Barbara High School. As a young woman, Maria worked at St. Francis Hospital with her lifelong best friend Margaret. She later worked at Picket Industries and Williams Paperbox Company in Santa Barbara. She started her 35yr career with County of Santa Barbara working at Franklin Center, Santa Barbara Probation Department, Santa Barbara Marshall’s Office and finally retiring from the County of Santa Barbara Sheriff’s Department where they dubbed her simply “MG”. In 2018 she retired.
Maria had a passion for learning, sewing and design and spent two years at Woodbury College in downtown Los Angeles. After her retirement she too SBCC adult education classes. She loved “segunda” shopping at all the various thrifting spots in Santa Barbara and Ventura. She would spend time in Carpinteria with her friends and eventually joined Carpinteria Seniors Inc , an vibrant senior group. With the group, she enjoyed many trips and attended monthly meetings. She also loved her conversational Spanish group at the Carpinteria Library. She treasured time spent doing whatever she wanted whenever she wanted even if was just in front of her TV watching old movies. Maria was an avid lover of music. She was passionate about Reggae music with her favorites being Gregory Isaacs, Peter Tosh and Ziggy Marly attending a few concerts in the area. Using faith and art as her healer, during rough bouts with medical issues putting on tunes by Brenton Wood and Stevie Wonder helped her. Her family was always in her heart and mind. She was known for her openness to share personal experiences and family history stories. She comes from a large Santa Barbara family and had so many stories to tell.
She appreciated her coworkers, her friends, her community but most over all she appreciated her kids and her family. Maria will be profoundly missed by her family, friends, and all who had the privilege of knowing her.
A celebration of Maria T. Garcia’s life will be held at the Louise Lowry Center Santa Barbara 111 Victoria St. on Wednesday, March 12, at 2:30pm.