Odilia Arredondo

PHARR - Odilia Palacios was born on October 29, 1946, to Moncerrato & Elida Alaniz Palacios. Her parents' home was located at 301 E. Juarez in Pharr, Texas. In the early 1950's, there was a place where the citrus products were completely damaged, and her parents decided to go to California in search of work. Odilia attended her first school in Buttonwillow, CA. They came back home, and Odilia attended Buell Elementary at PSJA ISD for the next four years. The following two years were at Buckner Elementary, and then she went on to junior high and high school. During all the years she attended school, she accomplished 10 years of perfect attendance. She missed only one day in the 1st grade because she and her entire family woke up sick due to the fumes from the heater during winter. The second absence was in 7th grade, and that was due to the funeral of her uncle Jose Alaniz, her mother's brother, who had passed.
During Odilia's high school years, she excelled in the academic arena. She graduated at the top 10% of her class of 256 students in 1965 from PSJA High School. Not only did she do well in academics, but she also excelled in extracurricular activities. She was inducted into the National Honor Society, she was also in Mu Alpha Theta, and was part of the Journalism Honorary Club, the Quill and Scroll Society her Junior and Senior years. During her Senior year, she was homecoming queen candidate and Senior class favorite alongside Armando Garcia and Edgar Vela.
Other extracurricular activities involved 2 years as a PSJA High Bearette and part of the Student Council. After graduation, in November 1965, Odilia started working for PSJA ISD as a paraprofessional. After working as an aide, she decided to attend college. She went to college at night after being inspired by her younger sister, Oralia. Odilia realized she needed to go full-time, so she quit her paraprofessional job in 1968 and attended college full-time. She graduated with her bachelor's degree in 1970.
In 1970, Tomas and Odilia decided to marry. They became husband and wife on June 26, 1971. A week before the wedding, Tomas went looking for his friends who played in a local band called Los Unicos and found them at a recording studio where he heard THE song. He asked them to make it the theme for their wedding. The first time the song "Mi Unico Cariño" was played in public was while Tomas and Odilia danced their first dance as husband and wife.
In May of 1972, their first child, Susana Yvette was born. During the cantaloupe season, Tomas would go to Pecos to work, and since Odilia did not go, she began courses for her master's degree. At the end of the summer school program, Odilia and Susie made their way up to Pecos, Texas. The first of many memorable trips for this family.
In 1975, Tomas Javier "TJ" was born. In 1980, Renie Roel saw the first light of day. Now, Tomas and Odilia had three children. For six years, it was only three, but soon after, in 1986, Ellie Nicole was born, followed by Vanessa Omar in 1987. In total, there would be 5 Arredondo children who would give them 6 grandchildren. TJ married first, giving them 2 grandkids, Tomas Sebastian and Olivia Faith. Renie married Gina and gave them two more grandkids, Julius Ryan and Jayce Thomas. And lastly, Ellie married and gave them 2 beautiful girls, Adanai Elliesha and Abrie Ezraella.
There would be more grandchildren as Susie, TJ, and Renie married spouses who had children by their first marriages, adding a total of 7 more grandkids to the Arredondo family. Emma, Austin, Madison, Matthew, Jasmine, Natasha, and Brittany, all of whom she loved.
Odilia began her supervisor certificate and mid-management certificate. She left the classroom after 19 1/2 years to work as an administrator. First, she was hired as a T-1 Evaluator or Federal Programs evaluator. Several years later, she became the District's Evaluator and eventually the Federal Programs Director, after her sister Oralia Gonzalez's retirement.
In 2012, Odilia decided to retire after 45 years in public education. That year, she was diagnosed with cancer. For the next 11 years, she was cancer-free until 2023, when cancer was found in her neck. During that same time, she experienced the worst sadness when her husband of 53 years, Tomas, passed away on October 5th, 2024. Tomas had told his daughter Susie to make sure her mom had her surgery. She left the following day for Houston, and on October 8th, 2024, at MD Anderson, Odilia went through with her cancer removal. Despite this great loss, she fulfilled her husband's wish, went through with the surgery, and was cancer-free.
During her follow-up appointment in September of 2025, she was told that the cancer was back and growing. Odilia was told she had nine months to live, but even the doctor knew who knew for sure (God).
In October, Odilia's children celebrated her 79th birthday by taking her to Las Vegas. Then in December, they traveled together to Colorado, where she delighted in playing in the snow with the family she loved so dearly. It was a truly special time, and the memories from those trips will be cherished by her family forever.
Odilia's spirit remained unshaken. Her faith in God never wavered. Surrounded by her children, she continued to live with gratitude, humor, and love. She will forever be remembered for her intelligence, kindness, generosity, and faith. She was a woman of strength and grace, a loving wife, mother, grandmother, great-grandmother, sister, and friend. Her legacy of love, faith, and family will live on in all who were blessed to know her.
Visitation will begin at 5 p.m., with a 6 p.m. rosary Wednesday, March 11, 2026, at Memorial Funeral Home in San Juan. Funeral service will take place at 10 a.m. Thursday, March 12, 2026, at St. Anne's Catholic Church in Pharr. Interment will follow at Palm Valley Memorial Gardens in Pharr.
Funeral services are under the direction of Memorial Funeral Home in San Juan.