MARIA MAGDALENA VALENCIA

Maria "Maggie" Magdalena Valencia of Las Cruces, died peacefully at the age of 95, on March 28, 2025, surrounded by her family, Patricia and her husband Col. Tom Poole, USAF, (Ret.), Capt. Raymond Valencia, USN, (Ret.), and his wife Raven, and Jack Valencia, Jr. Former Mayor Pro-Tem., City of Las Cruces. She was the beloved grandmother to Stephanie Valencia, Cory Valencia, Jennifer Arrowsmith, Jessica Young, and a cherished great grandmother to Madison Wall, and Tommy and Katie Young. Maria's face lit up each time she talked to her grandchildren. She loved her daily FaceTime calls with her children. She always said, "I'm fine, I'm eating my three meals, I'm not snacking in between, and I have already walked 18 times around the "merry-go-round" (the circuit in her home). The Matriarch of the Valdez and Archibeque families, Maggie was the beloved Tia Nena to 25 nieces and nephews, their spouses, and children.

Maggie was born on January 30, 1930, in Blanco, New Mexico. She fell in love with the love of her life, Jack Valencia, and they married when she was 18. For the next twenty years Jack was in the Navy. They made their homes in Los Angeles, CA., Guam, Chicago, IL., and San Diego, CA. During Jack's deployments, often for nine months at a time, she taught her three children to ride bikes, skate, and play baseball. She sat at the kitchen table while they did their homework, and she often drove to Los Angeles for weekends and holidays with her sisters, creating memories her family will cherish forever. Maggie was known for her hospitality and cooking, especially her homemade macaroni and cheese, pizza dough, and potato salad that accompanied her husband's barbeque chicken at their spontaneous outdoor barbeques for their friends and children.
Maria Magdalena followed in the footsteps of her namesake, Mary Magdalene, by being a devoted follower of her Lord and his teachings of service. Her life was one of service.  She served her family, her church, her friends, her community and along with her husband, the Veteran's community. Many family members that attended NMSU often found a place to call home for a semester or two. She and her husband, Jack, made it a point to always stop and visit family and friends locally and on their travels, continually making time for others. As Rani, Cory's partner, wrote in a poem to Maggie the night before her death, "…thanks for making room at the table for me." That was her essence, making room, making you feel welcome with a green or red enchilada supper and a place to lay your head. She devoted her life to prayer, praying before every meal, praying Mass daily in person or on television when she could no longer drive, and praying her rosary every night. Her many dichos (sayings) was "Everything is a prayer if you offer it up to the Lord."

Our heartfelt thanks and appreciation to those who helped our mother thrive to be 95 and at home. Thank you to her beloved caregivers, to Tender Care Nurses, Occupational and Physical Therapists, Meals on Wheels of Las Cruces, and volunteer Lay Eucharistic Ministers Diana Telles and Sonia Jones from Our Lady of Health Catholic Church who took Communion to Maria for many years. We especially appreciate the care and compassion of the staff at La Posada-Mesilla Valley Hospice for their guidance and support during our mother's transition from death into her new life. Maggie is now reunited with family who preceded her in death, her beloved husband of 68 years Jack L. Valencia, Sr., her parents Pedro and Jeronima Valdez, her sisters Rose Valdez, Stella Gilmartin, Emma Maurer, and her brother Pete Valdez, Jr.

Services for Maggie are scheduled for Monday, April 14, 2025, at the Cathedral of the Immaculate Heart of Mary, 1240 S. Espina, Las Cruces. Visitation will begin at 9:30 AM with the Holy Rosary at 10 AM. The Funeral Mass will be celebrated at 10:30 AM.  The Rite of Committal and Interment will follow at Masonic Cemetery, 760 S. Compress Road where she will be laid to rest alongside her beloved husband, Jack in the family plot.

After the burial, a luncheon (approximately 1 PM) will be held at the Parish Hall of the Cathedral to celebrate Maggie's life.

Service arrangements have been entrusted to the care of Baca's Funeral Chapels of Las Cruces, 300 E. Boutz Road, 527-2222. Your exclusive provider for "Veterans and Family Memorial Care." For online condolences logon to www.bacasfuneralchapelslascruces.com