Geronimo Garcia Zabarte

Geronimo Garcia Zabarte, known by all as Ron was a unique and memorable person that touched many people in various ways. He was born in Manila in the Philippine Islands on June 21st, 1936. Like so many of his peers during that tumultuous time he had many challenges as a youth growing up during World War II. Ron was very proud of his family heritage that had come over to the Philippines from the Basque country in Spain, and he took great pride in the fact that his father Adriano Zabarte was an officer in the Philippine Scouts Cavalry division of the US Army. Ron used to tell stories about how his father could shoot a hole through a quarter with his Colt .45 when it was tossed in the air. Ron never got to know his father much because Adriano succumbed to tuberculosis during the war years while Ron was just a young child. It was thanks to his father’s US Military service that Ron was able to migrate to the United States and claim US citizenship as a teenager. In 1955 Ron met and married his first wife Lois. They had two children, Lisa born in 1959, and David born in 1972. Ron remarried again in 1996 to Josephine who remained his loyal wife and cared for him all through his waning years until he took his last breath on April 23rd of this year in 2024. Ron was always quick to tell of how hard he had to work as a young man to make his way in the world and to earn money to live. Even in his early years in the Philippines he would tell of how he had shined shoes to make money, and when he first came to California he washed dishes to make a living. Ron started his own business first as a gardener and then in 1964 he started a landscaping business in the San Francisco East Bay Area of Contra Costa County. His early accomplishments included his winning awards from several garden shows conducted through the First District Agricultural Association of California in Oakland where his company the Zabarte Garden Company won the highest award of the Kaiser Cup in 1969, and again in 1972 he won the John A. Graciano Cup Award. Landscaping was Ron’s source for expression as well as his livelihood. Ron’s landscaping business was very successful and helped to transform many properties into beautifully landscaped homes that ensured his business success year after year. As a young man, Ron loved to hunt and fish. He had many interests. Ron enjoyed dancing very much, and cooking was also a hobby that he took pride in especially when he was able to entertained or gave a party. It had always been a dream of Ron’s to open a chicken BBQ restaurant so he could share his passion for cooking. In the end, all things took a back seat to his landscaping business which was his true passion and his outlet for expressing his creativity. He left a legacy of beautifully landscaped yards that over the years many families have spent countless hours in with family and friends. In 1995 Ron had been traveling in the Philippines where he met his wife, Josephine. They married in 1996 and were together from that time on. Josephine worked with Ron running the office at the Zabarte Garden Company, and she was his constant companion. During retirement and the closing of his landscaping business, he and Josephine would split their time by spending a portion of the year in the Philippine Islands near her family on the Island of Mindanao in Davos City and in the San Francisco Bay Area where Ron and Josephine kept a modest home. Ron was able to do some real estate development in the Philippines which gave him a great sense of accomplishment, and afterwards when business dealings were settled and they were ready for more travel they would come back to the US for the other half of the year to enjoy their time with family and friends. Ron enjoyed traveling and he very much enjoyed spending time with his wife and friends on trips abroad. The last two years of Ron’s life he and Josephine relocated to Gainesville in Florida to have a change and to enjoy new adventures. Ron will be remembered as an unforgettable figure in the lives of those who knew him. He was with us for almost 88 years, and now may he rest in peace. A Mass of Christian Burial will be held on Saturday, June 1, 2024, at 11:00 a.m. at Queen of Peace Catholic Church 10900 S.W. 24th Ave. Gainesville, FL. with Fr. Alberto Esposito as celebrant. A memorial service will be held on June 21, 2024, at 1:00 pm at Christ the King Church 199 Brandon Rd. Pleasant Hill, CA 94523. Refreshments will be served following the ceremony.

Geronimo Garcia Zabarte

June 21, 1936 - April 23, 2024