John (Jay) De La Rosa

June 5, 1948 - May 2, 2021

John (Jay) De La Rosa, resident of Harlingen, formerly of San Antonio, passed away, surrounded by loving family members, on May 2, 2021 in Harlingen at the age of 72 years. Jay was born in Raymondville on June 5, 1948. He worked for the FAA for 48.5 years and received many awards over the years for his exemplary service. Jay also served honorably and gallantly in the Air National Guard Reserve for 6 years. Jay had a wonderful sense of humor. His jokes and impersonations brought a smile to all. He was an extremely intelligent, hard-working, kind, and generous soul, always willing to extend a helping hand to those in need. He was also courageous, never allowing life’s difficulties to bring him down. He was meticulous with his work, especially when writing. He even had a great singing voice. His family will always remember how he would imitate Elvis Presley and sing along to songs he knew by heart. A fairly well-traveled man, he lived in many places in the U.S., and enjoyed visiting Mexico, always returning to the RGV, which he considered home. Ice cream was his favorite dessert. It brought back fond childhood memories with his father. The tradition of having ice cream after a long day was continued with his children, and even more so, in the last years of his life with his youngest daughter. He also enjoyed helping out in the kitchen. He dared to spin pizza dough in the air “like the Italians” to make homemade pizza and his banana nut bread was the best! Watching movies, enjoying music, spending time with loved ones, learning about outer space and possible extraterrestrial life, and traveling. Jay will dearly be missed and never forgotten by his wife, 8 children, John Jay, Jenny (Tom), Marissa (Al), Kimberly (Colby), Hilary (Beto), Justin, Sherry, and Edlyn; grandchildren, brothers, sister, aunts, uncles, cousins, nieces, nephews, and friends, family and friends.