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Gabriel J. Fernandes, 86, of San Antonio, Texas, quietly passed away after a brief illness at his home on January 13, 2023, with his wife by his side. Gabriel was born on March 25, 1936, in Barkur, a village in the state of Karnataka, India. He was the third of six children, born to Jerome and Assumpta Fernandes. Although he enjoyed school and was an honor student, he could not pursue a college education after high school due to financial hardships. His father encouraged him to move to Bombay (now Mumbai) to find work. After moving “to the big city”, he eventually got his start as a lab technician in 1954 at the Cancer Research Institute of Tata Memorial Hospital, and later became the manager of its animal care facility. While in this position, Gabriel met a visiting research doctor from the United States who offered him a position in his lab at the University of Minnesota. He moved to St. Paul, Minnesota in 1968 with his wife and baby son. He obtained his Bachelor of Science in Biology and Master of Science in Immunology from the University of Minnesota while working full time. In 1977, he was offered an opportunity to move to New York City to work with Dr. Robert Good, the president of Sloan-Kettering Memorial Hospital. Gabriel was given the privilege of running his own research lab and equipment to continue his research on nutrition and aging. While in New York, he went back to Bombay to register for his doctorate, obtaining his Ph.D through the University of Bombay in 1979. In 1981, he and the family moved to San Antonio when he was offered a position as Associate Professor at the University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio. He became a full professor in 1986. His pioneering studies of Omega-3 fish oil in aging and nutrition led to continuous NIH (National Institute of Health) grant funding until his retirement in 2014. Gabriel and his wife Clara were married for 56 years. Their children joked that they spent more time together in the last few years than they had in the first 50 years, but still got along! Gabriel never had any hobbies, but he enjoyed fishing, playing with the family dogs, keeping up with news and politics, and enjoying a good glass of scotch. He loved his wife’s cooking and always wanted to entertain friends and family at his home with good food and wine. Gabriel was preceded in death by both of his parents, two brothers (Benedict and Romalth) and his sister (Helen/Sr. Consilia). He is survived by his wife, Clara; his children, Ashu and Anji; his brothers James and Vincent; and his grandsons, Griffin, Jaxon and Dagen. A Memorial Mass will be held at St. Matthew Catholic Church on Saturday, March 25, 2023 at 11 a.m. followed by a reception in the Parish Hall at St. Matthew Catholic Church in San Antonio, Texas. Family and friends are invited to come and share fond memories and stories. In lieu of flowers, contributions in his memory may be made to the St. Jude Children’s Hospital ~ https://www.stjude.org or to the San Antonio Food Bank ~ https://safoodbank.org/.

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Gabriel J. Fernandes

March 25, 1936 - January 13, 2023