Message for the memorial

Just thought of quoting a few words of what I think my brother Gonzi would want to say to all of us from up above.


"Sorry I had to leave right away
I look down and smile at you everyday.
If friends remember and come to say Hi,
Tell them I've departed, but please don't cry.
And to others I'd like to say
Don't mourn because I've passed away
I am walking streets of gold
And am lucky the blessed Lord to behold.
Remember to say a prayer for me
I'll treasure your love through eternity.
So carry on as you did before
Till all of us meet on Heaven's bright shore.
Remember I love you, Remember I care
I'll always be with you
Though you don't see me there."

Fr. Anand da gama pais,

Goa, India.

(This poem was read at the end of the memorial service on July 18, 2009)

Gonzaga Memorial Video

The sweetest reflection

Gonzaga truly was one of the sweetest reflections of the kindness and joy of the Lord that one seldom encounters. I didn't know Gonzaga well, but what I did know was enough to know his deep love for God and his friends. He never forgot the things we consider "tiny" - to speak congratulations or acknowledgment to others for things large and small. To take note of the things people don't often see or speak of, but that those who look with the heart see and understand. It is a rare gift and one reflective of a heart truly submitted and kind.

I am grieved for you Paul and Scottie and Gonzaga's family and how you are coping with this loss. Please know my heart and prayers are with you, and I hope you are finding the comfort of the many that love you and Gonzaga in the midst of this as something to keep you going.

Thank you Gonzaga for being a man of strength, integrity and great love. I hope you are laughing on streets of gold among many, many friends and lives you have touched.

E'en for the dead I will not bind my soul to grief;

Death cannot long divide.

For is it not as though the rose that climbed my garden wall

Has blossomed on the other side?

Death does hide,

But not divide;

You are but on Christ's other side!

You are with Christ, and Christ with me;

In Christ united still are we.

Lara Long

San Francisco, CA

Dear Friend

You would have so loved seeing all the wonderful things that people have said about you in this memorial. I'm not sure you truly knew how many people's lives you touched or how many people really cared about you. It has taken me awhile to have the courage to read all that is written here and to write something myself. I will miss you. I am so thankful of the time we have had together.

Sandra Wolf Klitzing, Ph.D., CTRS
Illinois State University
School of Kinesiology and Recreation

Legacy of a great friend!

Hey Gonz! I can’t believe and never even vaguely expected that I would be writing to express our friendship and how much you have been part of my life and well-being in all these years. I still remember the time we met at Sanctuary on October 26^th, 2003. From then on, our friendship just grew and we became like family almost!

I can never forget the awesome times we have had, whether it was socializing after Church, your giving me a ride when I was a poor Grad student whenever I needed, dropping me home after my late night classes from San Jose State, spending time at your office and cleaning your desk at SJSU, being the counselors’ counselor at the Royal Family Kids Camp, meeting for coffee/lunch/dinner whenever we could, watching Bollywood movies, cooking together, having some “healthy” arguments on politics, some deep and authentic sharing in our Men’s Group, or exploring to great depths of what was going on in each other’s personal and professional lives at any time.

Can I even start listing some of the greatest qualities I saw in you and how inspired I have been through those? The list will be too long and endless. But I loved how you so cared for people, no matter how they were. You consciously made an effort to make people feel welcomed and cared. You were so genuine in your words and never cared to impress anyone or any group. You thought you did not belong, but at the same time used that to make the real outcasts totally belong. You always aspired for a better world! You always questioned yourself as to how you could live a life that would be meaningful for others. You ensured that people will see your life and understand the meaning of being a true Christian. You always spoke for the marginalized, the oppressed, and the “others” in general. Every table you were a part of, you always reminded people of the society, the culture, and some if its shortcomings and what we all can do to change it. You were such a great son, brother, uncle, and friend. You were so dedicated in your profession. You had so many laurels in your education, career, and all other associations, but yet you were always so humble of all that! Every opportunity you had, you insisted on making a difference. You were such a great man! This list can only serve as a starting point to even summarize your achievements and greatness!

I still can not believe the fact that you are not going to be with us anymore on this earth, but I know for sure that you are at an even better place now, and constantly watching over us. We will certainly miss you physically around here, but I know all our great memories will remain with us forever, and nothing can take those away from us. We love you, and I know for sure you will love us as you always did! In the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, your friend and brother always… Alfred

Alfred Jude,

Sunnyvale, CA

A quick note to my friend Gonzaga:

Gonzaga, I met you around a year ago when I started working as a coordinator in the Department of Hospitality, Recreation & Tourism Management at San Jose State University. While I may not have known you for as long as I would have liked to, I am still honored to consider myself a friend of yours. Your positivity was contagious and your spirit was truly one-of-a-kind. I’ll never forget our sociological discussions as well as our conversations in Portuguese in the department office. It doesn’t surprise me at all how much you touched the lives of so many others, for you were a genuine person in a world that is suffering from a shortage of genuine personalities. May your soul rest in peace.

Take care Gonzaga,

Jason Amarante,

San Jose State University.

Condolences

May your soul rest in peace!

Our heartfelt sympathies go to your family.

Aldrin and Kezia Alberto

What an Amazing Person

I still remember the first day I met Gonzaga. I was in my last semester of my undergraduate degree (Spring of 2000) and had returned from internship for one of the few on campus meeting days we had that final semester. The same day the department was also conducting interviews for the open professor positions and we were lucky enough to get to talk with the candidates (I too remember Gonzaga in the suit that day). Honestly at that point, I couldn’t have cared less what the candidates were saying as I was graduating. Really, now as I look back, I can’t believe how important that day was in my life and how lucky I was that Gonzaga took that position at SJSU.

Gonzaga was an amazing professor. He pushed his students to the limits of their capabilities because he cared about them and wanted them to achieve greatness. He was one of the hardest working people I have ever met. I never took a class from Gonzaga, but I do have very fond memories of Gonzaga’s early years at SJSU. Back then he would often sit in on the graduate classes of the other professors, which you could always count on going from the regular lecture to a lively debate. I would not have finished my degree without him. While he didn’t let me off easy, he also refused to let me fail.

Gonzaga was a great friend. For some reason after I finished graduate school I actually got to see Gonzaga more often. At first we would have a reason for getting together (intern discussion, a presentation I was making for one of his classes or something else professionally related), but as we went on we just started getting together to talk over lunch. I never told him how much this actually meant to me as he was one of the very few people in my life I felt comfortable enough to speak openly with on anything.

Gonzaga cared. That is what I will remember the most. I can’t even remember how or when Gonzaga became such a big part of my life, but I do know that without him I would not be the person I am today. His belief in me actually inspired me on to things I thought I would never do. Last semester Gonzaga invited me in to one of his classes to speak. I would do this every semester for at least one of his classes. When he introduced me he told the class the story of his interview day and his meeting with the class of undergraduates that I was in. He pointed to the back of the room and the spot I was sitting in that day 9 years ago and jokingly told them a story about remembering a goofy kid in shorts and a t-shirt that couldn’t wait to get out of class. He remembered this because he really cared. I know that I was special to Gonzaga, but I know that because to him we were all special. He cared about everyone of us, his students, his colleagues, his friends, his family, and all those disadvantaged that needed caring the most. I am proud to have known such a great person.

Goodbye my friend. You will be missed.

Chris Ghione

Morgan Hill, CA

Is that my friend Gonzaga?

Passing through the hallways I often heard, "is that my friend Braaaandi?" and was always greeted with a huge smile. Finding out about Gonzaga's passing has shaken my family and a piece of us has darkened. My husband, Glenn, and I spent many hours with Gonzaga during our time at San Jose State University. Gonzaga was a wonderful man with an open and loving heart. I often felt other's didn't see in Gonzaga what we saw and loved. He helped me through a very difficult time when a family member had passed, Gonzaga's compassion during that time will never be forgotten. I only wish we had been able to say good bye and I can only hope he knew how much he meant to me and Glenn. Gonzaga truly was one of a kind- and has obviously touched many lives. I've attached a photo of Glenn, Gonzaga, BJ, and me at a scholarship breakfast- we will forever miss our buddy Gonz.

Brandi & Glenn Dionne

Class of 2006

Sacramento, CA

Dear Gonzaga

Dear Gonzaga,

I am saddened as so many are. Perhaps you are too. Did you think as you passed of unfinished things? Your To Do List was always long and exciting, but I think you had no reason to look back. The testimonials to your life are amazing, don’t you think? You must be grinning because I believe you knew just who you were meant to be and you did yourSELF (as we used to say) proud (your mother and father, too). Csikzentmihalyi would be proud, too... you were true to yourSELF!

Since retiring, I have missed our philosophy discussions, chewing over ideas and debating grounded research. You loved the playground of the mind; it was more real than the trivial tangibles tripping us up every day. You were driven by those ideas and debatable situations... eager to leap forward, to get somewhere no one else had explored, to make the world a better place, and to bring others along in the adventure. Often, I was a weight dragging on your foot, nagging about the reality the rest of us experienced... evaluations, publication, promotion, tenure, administrative details, organizing our offices... you know! In good humor, you politely listened, then went on with what was more important - the student, the colleague, the challenge, the discovery. And there you have it... a life of time too short for those you have left behind, but a life fully lived with all your remarkable capacity.

Thank you, Gonzaga, for taking me along for part of your journey. It was precious.

Love,
Moe

(You were one of two allowed to call me that - because you named me with caring.)

Maureen Glancy
Professor Emerita
SJSU