Senior Living center celebrates Chapa

Cedar Creek Senior Living celebrated the life of resident Oscar Chapa at its latest “This is Your Life” gathering.

He was born Aug. 11, 1933, to Bertha and Ted Chapa. He had one older brother, Edward who was three years older than he and, eventually, three sisters named Mary, Yolanda and Irma.

His father owned an ice company in Texas before World War II. His dad did very well until home refrigerators, which replaced iceboxes, were introduced to U.S. homes starting in the 1930s. This drove the Chapa family out of the ice business.

Shortly after, a teenaged Oscar Chapa, his father and his brother hitched a ride to Pasadena, where they stayed for a short time before finding grape harvest work in Madera. The whole family eventually moved to Madera. His mother couldn’t fit much into their vehicle and left much behind. However, she was able to fit his bike, which later allowed him to make money by delivering newspapers from his bike...