Ascension Montague-Matthews

Surrounded by her family, Ascension (Choni) Matthews passed away on Thursday, December 26, 2019 at the age of 81 years 7 months. Born on May 26, 1938 in Zaragoza, Spain, Choni was the youngest of two children to Alejandro and Josefina Gracia.

As a child, Choni enjoyed traveling to the beaches of Spain. She told stories of the beautiful beaches and the not so pretty ones. She was a born rebel at heart and would sneak food into her desk at her Catholic school hiding her snacks from the nuns. Choni was always so smart. When she was a little older, she took care of the financial books for her father’s automotive business. Later in life, her mother wanted her to become a nun and pushed hard for that to happen. But Choni had other plans. She wanted to go to medical school. As a final act of rebellion, Choni married a United States Air Force Tech Sargeant 10 years her senior, and her life adventures as a military wife began.

After losing her youngest son to a brain tumor at age 5, Choni made a brave decision to stay in the United States and start a new life for herself and her oldest son, Daniel. She taught herself the English language very quickly and worked hard to support the two of them. In 1971 she met and married Walter Montague and she and Daniel spent the next 15 years together until his passing in 1986. Four years later, Choni met William (Bill) Matthews and the two of them danced their way through the next 30 years.

Choni loved dancing, traveling, a little gambling now and then, being on Facebook and looking at the videos and pictures of her grandchildren and great-granddaughters on the Family App on her iPad. She has been a longtime supporter of St. Jude’s Children’s Hospital.

Choni is survived by her husband, William Matthews, Sr., son Daniel Montague, wife Michelle, step-son Bill Matthews, Jr., wife Lisa, brother and sister-in-law Jose Luis and Araceli Gracia, six grandchildren Corbin (Hilary) Montague, Candice (Joel) Zepp, Melody (Ashley) McLerran, Kayla (Justin) Calhoun, Mason Matthews, Anthony Saldana, four great-granddaughters Georgia Zepp, Zelda Montague, Blakely Calhoun and Emma Saldana, along with numerous nieces and nephews in Spain.

She is preceded in death by her parents, her son Jose Luis “Pepe” Bosley and her beloved dog Sandy.

A Funeral Service will be held at 11:30AM on Tuesday, December 31, 2019 at Schertz Funeral Home, with Visitation beginning one hour before at 10:30AM.  Graveside Services will follow at 1:15PM at Fort Sam Houston National Cemetery.

In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the American Cancer Society or St. Jude’s Children’s Hospital.

The family would like to thank Kindred Hospice for their wonderful support and guidance with a special thank you to Jamie, Debbie and Robert.

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