Rosario Gass
September 27, 1926 - February 8, 2020
Rosario (Chayo) Gass
Rosario (Chayo) Gass
1926 – 2020
Beloved mother, grandmother, great grandmother, sister,
aunt, cousin, and friend.
Chayo was born at home in Mazatlán, Sinaloa, Mexico on
September 27, 1926, and died at home in Claremont, CA
on February 8, 2020.
As a young woman, she enjoyed her family and friends in
Mazatlán and built relationships to last a lifetime. She was
sent to boarding school in San Diego to learn English and
returned to Mazatlán with the intention of living her life
there. She opened a flower shop and enjoyed making floral
arrangements.
One summer, beautiful young Chayo fell in love with a
handsome American man, James Morton Gass, as he
vacationed in Mazatlán from California. "Mort" was the
love of her life. They married in the cathedral of Mazatlán in 1953 and had four children. They lived in
California in the early years, and in 1962 they went to Mazatlán to build and run a small family hotel on
the beach, the Bungalows San Luis. After a few years in Mexico, the family moved back to California. In
1967 they founded the California Association of Independent Business (CAIB) representing the
legislative interests of California’s small businesses in Sacramento.
Chayo was creative and artistic and always enjoyed painting. After retirement, she devoted time to a small
shop in Mazatlán where she painted in oil and acrylic and sold her work to locals and visitors alike. She
was featured in various art gallery shows and museums in Mazatlán and the USA under the name Rosario
Gass. In her retirement years, she spent her time between Claremont and Mazatlán, enjoying the best of
both worlds.
Chayo’s legacy is vast, diverse, and divine. She was smart, honest, good, down-to-earth, practical, kind,
and fun! She was interested in, and curious about, everything. She would proudly say “I am nosy. I love
being nosy.” Chayo had a great sense of humor.
She practiced her most intimate and basic values daily; Faith, Hope, Joy, and Love were her tenets. The
greatest was Love. She said that God is love and our only real responsibility in life is to love, God first,
then everyone else.
She lived a happy and full life until her perfect end and died peacefully and gracefully at home
surrounded by loved ones.
She is survived by a huge, loving family, including her four children: Amy Mittino, Bill Gass, Jim Gass
and Lory Alexandre: nine grandchildren and their partners, Christopher and Veronica, Juliana and Greg,
Kristina and Tim, Andy and Taryn, William and Carlie, Jimmy and Jessica, Beth and Sean, Sarah and
Amanda, and Patrick and Christina: seven great-grandchildren, Kaitlyn, Averie, Saoirse, Pennelope,
Guinevere, Matilda and Luca: two sisters: Laura and Saida: two brothers Raul and Rodolfo: several
cousins: at least 100 nieces and nephews: many, many friends; and eight adult children who adopted her
as their mother; Ron Mittino, Cindy Gass, Linda Finley, Dan Ramos, John Castro, Arturo Coppel, Luly
Coppel and Alejandro Coppel.
A memorial Mass in honor of Rosario (Chayo) Gass will be held at noon on Saturday, March 7, 2020 at
San Secondo d’Asti Catholic Church, 250 N. Turner Ave., Ontario, CA, with lunch to follow.
Beloved mother, grandmother, great grandmother, sister,
aunt, cousin, and friend.
Chayo was born at home in Mazatlán, Sinaloa, Mexico on
September 27, 1926, and died at home in Claremont, CA
on February 8, 2020.
As a young woman, she enjoyed her family and friends in
Mazatlán and built relationships to last a lifetime. She was
sent to boarding school in San Diego to learn English and
returned to Mazatlán with the intention of living her life
there. She opened a flower shop and enjoyed making floral
arrangements.
One summer, beautiful young Chayo fell in love with a
handsome American man, James Morton Gass, as he
vacationed in Mazatlán from California. "Mort" was the
love of her life. They married in the cathedral of Mazatlán in 1953 and had four children. They lived in
California in the early years, and in 1962 they went to Mazatlán to build and run a small family hotel on
the beach, the Bungalows San Luis. After a few years in Mexico, the family moved back to California. In
1967 they founded the California Association of Independent Business (CAIB) representing the
legislative interests of California’s small businesses in Sacramento.
Chayo was creative and artistic and always enjoyed painting. After retirement, she devoted time to a small
shop in Mazatlán where she painted in oil and acrylic and sold her work to locals and visitors alike. She
was featured in various art gallery shows and museums in Mazatlán and the USA under the name Rosario
Gass. In her retirement years, she spent her time between Claremont and Mazatlán, enjoying the best of
both worlds.
Chayo’s legacy is vast, diverse, and divine. She was smart, honest, good, down-to-earth, practical, kind,
and fun! She was interested in, and curious about, everything. She would proudly say “I am nosy. I love
being nosy.” Chayo had a great sense of humor.
She practiced her most intimate and basic values daily; Faith, Hope, Joy, and Love were her tenets. The
greatest was Love. She said that God is love and our only real responsibility in life is to love, God first,
then everyone else.
She lived a happy and full life until her perfect end and died peacefully and gracefully at home
surrounded by loved ones.
She is survived by a huge, loving family, including her four children: Amy Mittino, Bill Gass, Jim Gass
and Lory Alexandre: nine grandchildren and their partners, Christopher and Veronica, Juliana and Greg,
Kristina and Tim, Andy and Taryn, William and Carlie, Jimmy and Jessica, Beth and Sean, Sarah and
Amanda, and Patrick and Christina: seven great-grandchildren, Kaitlyn, Averie, Saoirse, Pennelope,
Guinevere, Matilda and Luca: two sisters: Laura and Saida: two brothers Raul and Rodolfo: several
cousins: at least 100 nieces and nephews: many, many friends; and eight adult children who adopted her
as their mother; Ron Mittino, Cindy Gass, Linda Finley, Dan Ramos, John Castro, Arturo Coppel, Luly
Coppel and Alejandro Coppel.
A memorial Mass in honor of Rosario (Chayo) Gass will be held at noon on Saturday, March 7, 2020 at
San Secondo d’Asti Catholic Church, 250 N. Turner Ave., Ontario, CA, with lunch to follow.
