Gilbert

Gilberto R. Aragon attends WMC since 2005.
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Every Sabbath while the congregation is sitting in the
sanctuary listening to the sermon, there is one man who
is busy in the kitchen adding the last touch of spices,
stirring the soup, and making sure all the dishes have
the perfect consistency and taste. His name is Gilberto
R. Aragon, affectionately known to all of us as 'Gilbert.'
He traces his family ancestry all the way back to 1692 in
the town of Atrisco, Spain. Here in America the family
established a base in Albuquerque, New Mexico, which,
he explains, was originally named after the Spanish Duke
of Albuquerque. Then in 1938 some members of the
family started to make their way to California. And
that's how Gilbert ended up growing up in Los Angeles.
He attended public schools for his elementary education.
Later he received a Catholic education at Salesian High
School. From there he went on to culinary school and
he spent 30 years of his life working as a chef in Santa
Barbara; all the while attending Sunday mass at the
Catholic church wherever he went.
After his retirement he returned to the Los Angeles area
to care for his elderly father.
When his father was admitted to White Memorial
Hospital, Gilbert met Anita Tupas and Pastor Archie
Tupas who offered him friendship and support during
his father's illness and eventual death.
This was a very challenging period in Gildbert's life.
He had a difficult time coping with the absence of his
father. After the funeral Gilbert fell into a deep depression,
serious enough for him to be on constant medication.
This was around 2005.
It was at this moment that Pastor Archie Tupas and his
wife Anita invited Gilbert to come to our church so he
could at least be out of his house to meet some people.
Anita Tupas was at that time in charge of overseeing the
potluck ministry, so she suggested that Gilbert could
come to WMC to help us cook for the potluck. Gilbert
reluctantly agreed to try it. Gradually Gilbert began to
meet some of the church members and he started to
make friends. Soon he realized it was a great therapy
and it was doing him a lot of good for his downcast spirit.
He also started to develop an interest in finding out what
these Seventh Day Adventists "are all about." The next
step for him was to start taking some Bible studies with
Pastor Tupas. Brother Gilbert was very cautious and
deliberate in his approach. He wanted to make sure what
he was doing was the right thing. So he continued taking
Bible studies for five long years until he finally was able
to reach the point where he could take that great leap of
faith and be baptized. That happy occasion took place in
December of 2009. Now Gilbert had officially decided to
join the White Memorial family. We are happy to have him
with us. He is also happy to find a home at WMC because
he feels like he has so much to contribute to the potluck
ministry. He is also enthusiastic about the Community
Services Ministry as a perfect way to reach out to our
neighbors.