Odelia Gloria Echezarreta Y Carrodeguas Garcia passed away peacefully at the Wells Nursing Home In Johnstown, NY on December 2, 2025. She was born On November 18th, 1936, in San Jose de las Lajas in Cuba. She is predeceased by her father Arturo Roman Echezarreta Y Mulkay, her mother Primativa Carrodeguas Y Gonzalez, her sister Maria Antonia Echezarrta and her husband of 49 years Vicente Gomez Garcia. She will be missed by her loving son Vincent Garcia (Elizabeth), her grandson Andrew Garcia, her daughter Diana Garcia, and grandsons Maddox Kelly and Alexander Kelly. Odelia was an exceptional individual with a high level of intelligence and survival skills who led a difficult life filled with adversity that she fought through. Growing up, Vicente always had a crush on Odelia and after several years of pursuit, he proposed and married his true love, and they went on to lead a beautiful life together. Professionally, Odelia was very studious and was one of a small number of pharmacists in Cuba where she led a very successful career for several years. Her son got sick and after many professional medical opinions she was told that in order for her son to survive and get the proper nutrients they needed to leave Cuba. They applied to come to the U.S. and temporarily moved to Spain for nearly 3 years and eventually got to move to the U.S. in 1974. They were very excited to pursue the American dream, they came to the U.S. with the shirts on their back, no money and a lot of intention.

They worked towards becoming citizens and welcomed their daughter Diana in 1975. Odelia worked endlessly to provide for her children. Her pharmacist license was not valid in the U.S., and she could not afford to pursue that, so she worked at Montco and Breton Industries throughout her career. She was frugal, disciplined and did everything she could to provide for her family in hard times. She made holidays magical, in times of not being able to afford clothes, she was a seamstress and made custom outfits for her daughter, she was an incredible cook and made gourmet homemade meals everyday despite a hard day's work. She loved music and her favorites included Julio Iglesias, Gloria Estefan, Freddy Fender, Kenny Rogers and Ricky Martin. She loved Lake George and planned special annual trips every year. She was a bargain hunter and enjoyed spending hours looking for the best deals. Her favorite beverage was espresso coffee. Other things she enjoyed were casinos, playing dominoes, Chinese buffets, designer perfumes and costume jewelry. Her favorite times were spent with her 3 grandchildren. She made the most of a very simple life. There is a short poem by a Spanish artist that describes her: "Vivo con poco porque necessito mucho sentir. Camino despacio, amo intensamente y creo con las manes manchadas de vida. No persigo el ruino ni las prisa; persigo la verdad de un cafe compartido, del sol entrando por la ventana, de una emocion que nose explica, se vive. La pasion no esta en tener mas, sino en mirar lo que ya existe como si fuera la primera vez." In english translation, "I live with little because I need to feel deeply, I walk slow, love intensely and create with hands stained by life. I dont chase or hurry: I chase the truth of shared coffee, sunlight through windows, emotions that aren't explained- only lived. Passion isn't about having more, but about seeing what exists as it was for

the first time." In addition, she loved all animals and had many furry companions in her lifetime. She suffered from Parkinson's and Alzheimer's. Those complications took a long toll on her life. The family would like to thank all of the caregivers who have taken care of her over the last several challenging years. Donations can be made to the Alzheimer's Society in her name and a small intimate service for her immediate family was held on December 11, 2025.