Roll Call Tribute

Published in Houston Chronicle from June 6 to June 7, 2018

Manuel Castrejana(1954 - 2018)
Manuel Castrejana
1954-2018
Manuel ("Pete") Castrejana, age 63, born August 5, 1954 to Ferdinand and Dora Castrejana in San Antonio, Texas, passed away Monday June 4, 2018 from multiple myeloma. However, he did "not go gently into that good night". He fought the myeloma long and hard for 15 years, one of the longer survivors of myeloma at MD Anderson. He was preceded in death by his parents, and his brother, David Castrejana.
Manny leaves behind his loving wife, Josie Castrejana, of 38 years; children, Jacob (Janeli) Castrejana and Tracy (Ben) Sokoler; grandchildren, Amelia, Octavius, Maximus, and Ezri Castrejana; brothers JD (Myrna) and Richard (Judy) Castrejana.
Manny grew up in San Antonio, TX with his three brothers. He graduated from Thomas Edison High School and graduated from Texas A&M University in 1977 with a B.S. in Chemistry. In 1978, while in Corpus Christi he met the love of his life, Josie Garcia. Pete and Josie were married August 18, 1979 in Corpus Christi. They moved to Houston, TX where they began their careers and started a family.
Manny received his MBA from Houston Baptist University in Feb 1990. Manny worked in IT for many years, making many friends from colleagues along the way at Southwestern Bell Telephone, Compaq, Enron and lastly at LyondellBasell from where he retired in July 2003. He was influential in the lives of everyone he met.
Pete was the epitome of strength and grace. With every uphill battle, he was determined to beat the odds. He beat every prognosis by leaps and bounds. He enjoyed spending time with his children and grandchildren and large extended family. In January of this year, after months of rehab, he walked his beautiful daughter Tracy down the aisle at her wedding. Pete was well known for his wisdom and generous heart. Many times Pete and Josie provided a home for those in need of a place to stay and many sought his advice especially on career choices. Pete had a huge heart for education and participated in the Junior Achievement program for several years. Pete's loving spirit will live on in our hearts forever and he will be missed greatly.
Visitation will be held Thursday, June 7th at Forest Park Funeral home, 12800 Westheimer Rd, from 4pm to 8pm with a Rosary at 6pm. The Funeral Mass will be on Friday, June 8th at St. Justin Martyr Church, 13350 Ashford Point Dr., at 10:30 am. Memorial donations in memory of Pete may be made to M.D. Anderson and Houston Hospice. Thank you to Dr. Donna Weber and her team for her great care of Pete and to Houston Hospice for their loving care in his last days.




Funeral Home
Forest Park Westheimer Cemetery
12800 Westheimer Road Houston, TX 77077
(281) 497-2330
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Forest Park Westheimer Funeral Home services notice
Houston, TX
281-497-2330

Manuel Castrejana
AUGUST 5, 1954 – JUNE 4, 2018

Manuel Castrejana was born on August 5, 1954 and passed away on June 4, 2018


Services


7
JUNE
Visitation
5:00 pm - 8:00 pm

FOREST PARK WESTHEIMER FUNERAL HOME
12800 Westheimer Road
Houston, TX 77077


8
JUNE
Funeral Service
10:30 am - 11:30 am

ST. JUSTYN MARYTR CATHOLIC CHURCH
13350 Ashford Point Dr.
Houston, TX 77082


8
JUNE
Reception
12:00 pm - 2:00 pm

ST. JUSTYN MARYTR CATHOLIC CHURCH
13350 Ashford Point drive
houston, TX 77082