Dr. Sam Mendoza age 84 passed away peacefully at his home in Alvin, Texas on Thursday, January 4, 2007, following a brief bout with cancer. A chapel service will be held at 10:00 am, Monday, January 8, 2007  at Carnes Brothers Funeral Home with Father John Bok, OFM, Pastor of St. Patrick Catholic Church officiating. Interment will follow at Calvary Catholic Cemetery in Galveston. Visitation will be from 5:00 pm until 8:00 pm on Sunday, January 7, 2007 at the funeral home with a Rosary to be held at 7:00 pm.

Sam was born October 10, 1922 in Galveston, Texas to Felipe and Soledad Hernandez Mendoza and baptized at Our Lady of Guadalupe Catholic Church. He was raised in the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railroad Company housing in Galveston, dropped out of High School and worked in the forest of East Texas in one of the government sponsored depression era work programs.  He then returned to Ball High School and graduated in May of 1942. He then joined the United States Navy and proudly served in the Pacific and Caribbean theaters during WWII. After the war he attended the University of Texas at Austin and the University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston on the GI Bill, graduating in May 1949 and May 1953 respectively. He was one of the first Galveston born Hispanics to graduate from college and medical school. For forty-one years he had a private medical practice in Detroit, Michigan, before retiring back to Texas in 1993.

Sam will always be remembered for his enormous generosity to his mother and father, brother and sisters, first cousins and aunts and uncles in all times and circumstances. He enjoyed taking his family to Las Vegas for fun trips and was an avid Longhorn football fan. He loved to watch professional boxing with his brothers. Sam would tell you that he had a wonderful life, and his family will miss him dearly.

Preceded in death by his parents, Sam leaves his loving wife of 30 years, Carmen whom he cherished; son, Dr. Sam A. Mendoza of Orlando, Florida;  daughter, Laura Lynn Psarianos and husband Peter of Troy, Michigan;  brothers, Dr. Roger Mendoza and wife Ellen of Houston, Al Mendoza and wife Betty of Pearland, and Jake Mendoza of Galveston; sisters, Connie Garza and husband Gus of Dickinson, Tanna Rodriguez and husband Juan, and Teresa Vargas of Galveston,  many nieces, nephews, other relatives and many friends.

Pallbearers will be his nephews, Rene Garza, Richard Garza, Robert Garza, Manuel Trevino, Frank Vargas, and Alex Vargas, Jr.