Irene Marie Castor
March
29, 1958 - January 17, 2016
Our
beloved Irene Marie Estrada Castor will always live on in our hearts. She
entered eternal life on January 17, 2016 after battling cancer for over two
years. She was born in Glendale on March 29, 1958. She was born to Miguel and
Ruth Estrada and was the oldest of four children. Her siblings include Linda,
Michael, and Francis. She grew up in Los Angeles, California. Her fondest
childhood memories were of the family trips they would take fishing, hiking,
and visiting the National Parks. She would tell stories of the picnics they had
and how her mom would pack a lot of good food. Irene’s love for animals began
in childhood. She loved having chickens, cats, and dogs. Growing up she enjoyed
swimming and studying ju-jitsu. Irene attended Wilson High School where she
loved to participate in ballet folklorico. She was fascinated by the costumes
and culture behind her dancing. She was always a strong and kind person who
emphasized helping others; which explains why she was also a lifeguard. After
graduating high school, she immediately joined the U.S. Navy in 1977 when she
was 18 years old. She worked as a lithographer for the Pacific Stars and
Stripes Newspaper. She was stationed in Tennessee then deployed to Japan from
1979 to 1982 where she met and married her husband, Peter Castor and made a lot
of life-long friends there. Together, they enjoyed the Japanese music scene and
immersed themselves in the Japanese culinary culture and sight-seeing. They
even hiked to the top of Mount Fuji. While living in Japan, even the Japanese
couldn’t deny her beauty inside and out. She was recruited and was able to
experience modeling, doing a commercial, and had a short lived role in a
Japanese soap opera. In 1982, Irene was released from active duty. She and her
husband settled down back in Moreno Valley, California. There, Irene raised her
two children, Elaine and David. She contributed to the local Christian church
community by volunteering to watch babies and young children so their parents
could attend services and was involved in her children’s bible study programs.
She also managed to graduate with her Associate’s Degree from Riverside
Community College. She worked as a receptionist and in the back office with
medical records at the local health clinic. Then she decided to stay home and
finish raising her 2 children. She loved all walks of life, especially animals
and children. Irene had a knack for befriending any animal from a toad in the
Merced River in Yosemite, to wounded birds or stray cats. She loved her cats.
She even took care of the strays and invested a significant amount of money to
get them fixed. She would even travel to the emergency vet in the middle of the
night to help them on several occasions. She even had a soft spot for bugs and
spiders, believe it or not. She would collect them with her bare hands (if they
weren’t poisonous) and gently placed them back outside. Her favorite were the
little jumping spiders. She would giggle when they would hop around as she
would try to get them to put them somewhere safe. Her soft spot for children
grew as her children brought over their friends. She would take in each friend
and treat them as though they were her own child. She would drive all the kids
to school and pick them up. Even on rainy days her car was packed with kids.
She might have to make more than one trip get each kid home safe. The friends
her kids made were special to her and quickly became family. She became a
second mom to several of them. Irene was very progressive and was an
independent thinker. She was easy to talk to and didn’t judge. She was a good
listener and didn’t gossip. Her taste in music was eclectic. She liked rock and
roll, alternative, classical, broadway, pop, and indie. Her laugh was
contagious and anyone who could hear her laugh from far away would know it was
her. She loved nature in all of its beauty. She looked forward to camping every
year, going on hikes, bike riding on nature trails, going to the beach,
swimming, nature walks, traveling, trying new food and drink places, etc. She liked
to explore the world. She liked to explore the cities. She encouraged everyone
to travel. She claimed it would “broaden our horizons to see that there are so
many more people to meet and cultures to learn from”. She was adventurous and
inspirational. She didn’t like to spend money on “things” like flowers,
decadent candies, or jewelry. Instead, she wanted to spend the hard earned
money on experiences or people who needed it more. Irene will be remembered as
selfless, loving, adventurous, courageous, strong, and happy. She was always
happy and smiling. She was easy going and down to earth. She was kind. She was
supportive to her loved ones in every way she possibly could be. She is
irreplaceable. She is unforgettable. She will remain in our hearts. She will be
that butterfly feeling in our chest when we are happy in an unfamiliar place,
learning new things with the people we love. Irene is survived by her loving
husband Peter, her two children Elaine and David, her sister Linda and
Feliciano (brother-in-law), brother Michael, brother Francis and Ana
(sister-in-law), all her nieces and nephews, extended family, and symbolically
adopted family friends. She was a wife, mother, sister, aunt, second mother,
and friend. She will be missed and remembered, but most importantly she will
always be loved.
Linda
Estrada-Sanchez
Irene,
My dearest sweet sister may god rest your soul. There will never be anyone like
you. However, I see you in the faces of your dear sweet Elaine and David. When
in their company, it's almost you. They share your passion and emotion for
life. It's painful to witness the heartbreak that Peter, Elaine and David are
going through at the moment. They will carry on with you in their hearts. Your
little family was godsend. You provided great memories for all that had the
pleasure to have met you. You will always be on my mind. Very Truly Yours,
Linda
Alex
Irene
was always kind, gentle, and quick to smile. May she rest in peace. –Alex
