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Carmen Ornelas, age 92, of San Antonio, went to meet our Heavenly Father on Wednesday, August 4, 2021. She was preceded in death by her husband, William R. Ornelas; her son, Samuel Ornelas, her brother Jesse Benavides, and her sister, Eva Alcala. She is survived by her daughter, Suzanne O. Johnson and her husband Ron; son, Rodolfo B. Ornelas and his wife Adrienne; son, Jimmy M. Ornelas and his wife Diana; and daughter, Deborah Ornelas-Habibi and her husband Cyrus. Her grandchildren are: Alex Ornelas, Christopher Rodriguez, Jennifer Soto and Eric Ornelas; and great grandchildren: Christian Garza, Abigail, Isobel and Harper Rodriguez, Samantha and Samuel Ornelas, and Isaac and Alessandra Ornelas. She is also survived by her brother Ismael Benavides and his wife Gloria; and sister Cathy Felan and her husband Fred; and numerous nieces and nephews. Carmen was born on January 21, 1929, in Talpa, Texas. When her father, Miguel Benavides began working for Santa Fe Railroad, her father and mother, Manuela Benavides, moved the family to Brownwood, Texas. At age 18, while working behind the sales counter at Woolworth’s in downtown Brownwood, Carmen was introduced to WWII veteran, William Ornelas, by her future mother-in-law. Although William was as impressed with Carmen as his mother was, he loved to joke that had Carmen not been ‘behind the counter’ when introduced, he would have seen her skinny legs and not began courting her. Carmen and William were married in Brownwood on February 7, 1948, on a cold day with snow and sleet. They celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary on a cold day with pouring rain. But in between, their 53 years of marriage were filled with sunny days and beautiful memories. After having 3 children, William’s work took the family to Fort Worth, where their 4th child was born. Soon his work moved the family to Wichita, Kansas, then to Tulsa, Oklahoma, and finally to San Antonio, where their 5th child was born. Carmen immediately fell in love with San Antonio and quickly determined that this is where they would settle down. While taking care of a hard working husband and 5 children, Carmen also found time to take on various other jobs as well. Being a clever person, she would only take on work that would accommodate taking care of her family at the same time and also hold interest for her. She worked many places including Handy Andy, Jefferson Cleaners, “cafeteria lady” in the public schools, and managed a Mrs. Baird’s Bread store. After her husband passed away, Carmen continued to fill her time working well into her seventies. A job she particularly sought after, was being an usher at the Mission’s Baseball games. Carmen loved baseball, so would only take the job if her position of usher would be inside the ball park so that she could catch the game while working. Her final job was inside Ingram Mall serving up “Dippin’ Dots,” and spending her paycheck shopping in the mall before going home. Carmen had a great sense of humor that would catch people by surprise. But her family always expected to get a good laugh from her, and would reach out to her whenever they needed lifting up. She never said ‘no’ to an invitation, loved to socialize, party and dance. She loved baseball, football, reading the newspaper, eating dessert, spending time with her many friends, shopping (returning), traveling the countryside to be with family and friends. After her mother’s death in 1984, Carmen became the matriarch of the entire extended family. She became a surrogate mother to many in the family and even family friends. Carmen had an extremely giving spirit, which served as an example to all who knew her, or even met her briefly. She was thinking of others until her final days. Even when she could barely speak, her words were only for the concern of those in her life. She leaves a great emptiness for those who loved her, and will be greatly missed by all who knew her. SERVICES Visitation will begin at 6:00 P.M. followed by the Rosary at 7:00 P.M. on Monday, August 9, 2021 at Mission Park Funeral Chapels, 3401 Cherry Ridge Drive. The Funeral Mass will begin at 1:00 P.M. on Tuesday, August 10, 2021 at St. Dominic Catholic Church, 5919 Ingram Road. Interment will follow at Fort Sam Houston National Cemetery.

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Carmen Ornelas

January 21, 1929 - August 4, 2021