Consuelo (Connie) Aguilar was born to Erastro Gonzalez and Maria Muñoz in San Bernardino, CA on July 24, 1928. She was their 5th and youngest child. On February 21, 2026, Connie passed away peacefully in her home in Grass Valley, CA. Within the embrace of those two dates, Connie lived a remarkable life of 97 years.

At 2 years of age, before memories are established, her mother died of tuberculosis. Shortly after, her father suffered a serious injury and was unable to care for the children. Connie and her siblings then lived with their grandparents whose rapidly failing health soon incapacitated them also. Throughout the following years of childhood, while growing up in a variety of settings, Connie’s siblings developed a close bond that was forged by these tragedies. At 16, Connie “aged out” of foster care and went to live with her brother Ernie and his newlywed wife Rosie. Ernie introduced his little sister to Joaquin (King) Aguilar. When Connie was 18, she and King married. For the following 75 years they wove their lives together in a beautiful tapestry of love and devotion.

It was the 4th of July, 1959 when Connie and King, who at the time had 3 young children, moved away from the Bay Area, bringing their family to a town they knew very little about. Connie sometimes recounted that sweltering day of arrival in Grass Valley, saying that all she could do was sweat and hold a hose of cool running water over her family. She wondered if she would survive for a week. That week of survival became 67 years of a flourishing life with family and many friends.

Along with King and his brother Pete, Connie established A&A Heating and Air Conditioning. Connie was the bookkeeper, exhibiting her gift for organization and attention to detail while shining her bright demeanor over all. Connie was an active member of St. Patrick’s Parish community as a member of the YLI, the Catholic Ladies Relief Society and Mount St. Mary’s Academy. Connie was adamant that her children would have a Catholic school education. When the family house burned to the ground, leaving her unable to pay the tuition, Connie asked if she could clean the school for the money to pay for her children’s education.

Connie, despite never knowing her own mother, she became the model of a loving mother with a gentle but steadfast, unshakable commitment to her children. Those in her care always experienced the delightfulness of her presence, the infectious song of her laughter, and the preciousness of each bite of her prune cake. She and her sister Dora established a long-standing tradition of making amazing tamales that continues to gather the family at Christmas time.

Although she experienced many hardships, Connie’s grit and grace transformed obstacles into opportunities, stone walls into open doors. She did not allow life’s challenges to keep her from cultivating a home of enthusiastic joy, great fun, wide generosity and warm hospitality. She and King were completely dedicated to each other in life, in work, in adventure but not in family card games when Connie’s competitive spirit flashed brightly with each hand.

In retirement, Connie took up golf and quickly became well known as a very talented golfer, and a sought-after partner. She won many tournaments and came home with her trophies. She was the NCC Club Champion. However, Connie will always be our family champion and a brilliant example of how to live life with gratefulness, beauty, strength, courage and love. Those qualities were her real trophies.

In her final few years, after King’s death in 2021, Connie lived a quieter reflective life. She traded in the birdies and eagles of the golf course for the hummingbirds and sparrows she fed daily on her porch. In serene hours of contemplation, gazing upon her flowers and into the depths of the sky from her favorite chair, she rummaged through the treasure chest of her life. She thought of her beloved husband King, her cherished siblings Mary, Ernie (Rosie), Dora (Jess), Alfred, her deeply cherished children Ken (Amelia), Larry (Carol), Christine (John), and Paul (Kristin). She’d think of her dearly loved grandchildren Kendi (Matt), Ben (Allie), Lorie (Jake), Owen (Journie), Patrick (Hannah), Regina, Annie (Max), her much-loved great grandchildren Athena, Vivienne, Scarlet, Sawyer, Della, Jack, Evan and Joseph, as well as her extended family and friends. In Connie’s moments of quiet she could smile, bless them all and whisper the only words that were left to say from her grace-filled spirit after 97 years of living, “Thank you.” “I love you all.”

With her passing, Connie hands us each a lantern, lit by her laughter and strength as we continue on our way with the legacy she bestows on us. Very frequently, after sharing a story or experience with Connie, her only comment would be, “How wonderful!” That will always be our culminating memory of you Connie, “How wonderful!”

A Rosary Vigil Service will be held on March 18, 2026 at 5:00 at Hooper and Weaver Mortuary in Grass Valley. Connie’s funeral mass will be celebrated on March 19, 2026 at 10:00 in St. Patrick’s Church, Grass Valley.

Memorial contributions can be made to: Mount St Mary’s Academy, Grass Valley CA