Gilbert Sanchez's Obituary
Gilbert “Gil” Alfred Sanchez Sr. made his journey to heaven peacefully in his sleep on June 25, 2025. He was beloved by his family, friends, and care team before passing from his battle with Parkinson’s disease with dementia. He was 84 years old.
Gilbert was born on October 4, 1940, in Truman, Minnesota, to Alfred and Margaret Sanchez. He was blessed later in life with 10 brothers and sisters.
He graduated with honors from Valley High School in Des Moines, Iowa in 1959 and attended Drake University and Princeton University. He humbly served his country as a member of the United States Army and the Army Reserves from 1962 to 1968.
Gilbert declared his love for Consuelo “Connie” Rivera and married on September 17, 1966, at Saint Anthony Catholic Church in Des Moines, Iowa. They were married for close to 59 years. As they moved from state to state for his work, they were blessed with 2 sons and a daughter before settling in Tampa, Florida. After working at Dun and Bradstreet for over 30 years, he retired at the age of 53. He began as a mail clerk and diligently worked up to become a Senior Vice President of Plan Services/Dun & Bradstreet before retiring in 1994.
He was a devout Catholic, a family man, the biggest Notre Dame fan, loved to play golf, enjoyed watching sports, a McDonald’s breakfast regular where he read his paper, went to the cinema often, loved a good steak, and traveled all over the country and world. He enjoyed working with his hands, especially on home construction projects and upkeep of his well-manicured yard. His favorite holidays were the ones where his family would gather to share a meal. Gilbert had a great sense of humor, loved sharing stories, and enjoyed good company.
Gilbert was intelligent, disciplined, determined, a problem solver, and a get-it-done kind of man. He applied this in the work that he did to care for his family and shared it as wisdom in life lessons. His family was his pride and joy. Gilbert loved his family, both immediate and extended, and would go above and beyond to make everyone who visited feel welcomed and taken care of. He shared his faith and generosity through service to the Church, charity to others, and in the needs and endeavors of his family.
He is survived by his loving and devoted wife, Connie Sanchez, his son Gilbert Sanchez Jr. (Denise), his son Anthony Sanchez Sr., and his daughter Annette Grymonpré (David); in addition, he is also survived by his siblings Jesse Lopez Jr. (Linda), Hilda Tompkins (Tom), Mario Lopez (Betty) , Barbara Berenguel, David Lopez (Diana), Ricky Lopez, Jennifer Lynch (Steve), Sharon Sanchez (Narbi), and Karen Sanchez. Gilbert has 6 grandchildren and 4 great-grandchildren. He was preceded in death by his grandmother Ramona Aguiniga, his father Alfred Sanchez, his mother Margaret Lopez, his brother Larry Lopez and his brother-in-law Larry Berenguel.
In memory of Gilbert, his family will hold a visitation at 10:00 AM (St. Joseph Wake Room) and a funeral service at 11:00 AM on Thursday, July 10, 2025, at St. Timothy Catholic Church, 17512 Lakeshore Rd, Lutz, FL 33558.
“It is not the magnitude of our actions, but the amount of love that is put into them that matters.”
― Mother Teresa
In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations to Priest Retirement and Clergy Care. Donations can be made at: https://www.givecentral.org/appeals-form-registration/acp671ff8d15aea1/user/guest
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