Refugio (Cuca) Peralta, born in Lompoc, California, grew up in Mexicali, Mexico, where she lived until she moved to Gilroy in 1961 with her first husband, Eduardo Talamante and their children.
She is survived by her children Arturo (Monica), Mario (Alice), Olga (Patricia), and Eddie (Stella) Talamante and her grandchildren Arturo, Rick, Tanya, Erick, Mario, Pat, Frank, Rosario, Eddie and Mariza Talamante, Angie (Padilla), Sonya (Malloy) and 19 great-grandchildren, her siblings, Nelly Romero, Emilio Castillo, Eva Montiel and Ema Castillo, and her nieces, Socorro Montiel, Luz Garcia, Eva Montiel, and Silvia Hurtado and many nieces and nephews in Gilroy, Mexicali, and Sonora, Mexico.
She was preceded in death by her parents, Emilio and Josefa, her beloved first husband Eduardo, her daughter Olivia, and more recently by her loving husband, Joe Peralta, whom she married in 1991.
Dona Cuca, Cuca or Cuquita, as she was known by her family and her many friends, was a loved and respected member of the Gilroy community. Known for her generosity, she helped many in need and volunteered for many years in the Guadalupana Society, the Funeraria Society, the Rositas Club, as a Catechism teacher, as a Cursillo leader, and with her husband Joe, at St. Joseph’s Lord’s Table.
She will be greatly missed by her family, friends and the many people whose lives she touched. Viewing will be held on Thursday, December 11, from 1:00 P.M. followed by a vigil at 7:00 P.M. at Habing Funeral Home, 129 Fourth Street, Gilroy. A mass will be held on Friday, December 12, at 11:00 A.M., at St. Mary’s Church in Gilroy, followed by burial and then a potluck reception.
