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Fred F. Gonzales passed away on Friday, March 17, 2006 following a short illness. Clemmie, his wife of 63 years, was at his side as was most of his immediate family. Fred was born in Petaca, NM, on June 2, 1917, and as a young boy tended the family's flocks of sheep in Northern New Mexico until leaving to attend Allison James School in Santa Fe and later Menaul High School in Albuquerque where, according to his yearbook, his ambition was "to be a friend of the friendless." After graduating he served in the New Mexico National Guard. Following an honorable medical discharge he moved to Seattle, WA, where he worked for Todds Shipyards and later for Boeing Aircraft as a machinist. There in 1943 he married Clemmie, a native of Belen, NM. The couple returned to New Mexico in 1949, where Fred began a 30-year career as an electronics technician with Sandia National Laboratories, retiring in 1982. In addition to Clemmie, Fred is survived by five children: Richard Gonzales and his wife, Anne, Rigina Wright and her husband, Roger, Aaron Gonzales and Maria Thompson and her former husband, Ernest Thompson of Albuquerque, and Dan Gonzales and his wife, Rae of Abiquiu, NM; four grandchildren: Anndee Wright Brown and her husband, Kirk, Nashaun Thompson and her former husband, Rick Gallegos, Ellen Gonzales and her husband, Paul Gutierrez, and Marcos Gonzales and his wife, Betty Estrada of Albuquerque; and six great-grandchildren: Beau Brown, Rhea and Rozlyn Gallegos, Julian Gonzales, and Tiger and Lance Gutierrez of Albuquerque. In accordance with his wishes, his immediate family held a private memorial gathering to celebrate his life and tell stories. Following cremation, his ashes will be placed in the ground in Albuquerque and beneath the earth of his beloved Northern New Mexico. Fred's family and friends will miss his puckish sense of humor, his passion for politics and social justice and his sense of wonder for all things wrought by Nature. They request that anyone desiring to do so make a contribution to the Menaul School, 301 Menual Blvd., NE, Albuquerque, NM 87107. Arrangements by Vista Verde Mortuary Rio Rancho, New Mexico 892-9920
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