'TIL WE SEE EACH OTHER AGAIN, TOCAYO, BIG JOHN

By Juan Montoya

This Saturday, as some of us sat on the grass at the Dean Porter Park listening to rock and roll bands in the open, a la 60s and 70s, we wondered where my "tocayo" Big John might be. 

We all knew him as Big John  because he was big compared to us, and to many Mexican-Americans locally. He always took it all in stride and joked about "you little guys" as he made his way to the jukebox to play his music. Downtown street people down on their luck knew the big man was an easy touch for a dollar every now and then. His heart was bigger than his body.

His taste ranged from Frank Sinatra to the 50s, 60s 70s and even into jazz. Steely Dan, Yes, and Steppenwolf were some of his favorites.
When he was playing "la llorona" you never knew what to expect. All you could be sure of was that it would be something good, even though you may not have known the songs.

That's why when we were at the concert on Saturday, we wondered why a rock and roll aficionado like Big John wasn't around and called him on his cell. There was no answer.
It wasn't until we got a call from a friend the next morning who told us he had passed on the Big Stage upstairs that we learned our brother had died early that morning. As they told us, he had been with friends listening to his music downtown and had parted, shaking hands all around to make his way home. He didn't make it to his work truck before a massive heart attack brought him down and he left us. No one knew that his last name was Gonzalez. We just knew him as Big John.
We will never forget this big, affectionate man who loved to work cutting expansion lines into concrete parking lots driveways. It's strenuous, heavy work that requires wielding a heavy cutter with diamond or graphite blades, often enveloped in a great cloud of gray dust. Big John loved it.
The only thing he loved more than work was his aged mother Aristea, who he took care of, and over who he fretted and loved dearly. He was also fiercely proud of his family, and particularly of his two sons, Justin and Jonathan, who he worried about when they were serving overseas in the military (U.S. Marines and Army) in Iraq and Afghanistan. When he spoke about them when they were overseas, his normally happy countenance would turn serious and we would assure him that Providence would look after their safety. When both returned safely to stateside, Big John played his music all that evening.
He was only 57 years old and he beat us to the punch.
The local daily says that visitation will begin at 5:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. with the recitation of the Holy Rosary at 7:00 p.m. Friday, July 29, 2016 at Garza Memorial Funeral Home Chapel and private cremation will follow.
As is the case with good man who leave us, we will miss him dearly and even the more so when we hear some of his favorite songs on the radio or in some local lounge where he and his friends used to meet and enjoy his music.
We pass on our condolences to his family and friends. Rock on tocayo!