Obituaries
Wade Boeck, retired civil engineer
Courtesy of Wade's family
Note: The following obituary, written by Laurel Boeck, appeared in the Denver Post.
My beloved husband, Wade Boeck, passed away suddenly on March 29. He was born on March 19, 1965, in Wheat Ridge, Colorado, to Dean and Patricia Boeck and he passed away just 10 days after his 59th birthday in Azle, Texas. We were just a few weeks shy of our 27th wedding anniversary on May 24.
Wade was a talented civil engineer with emphasis on highway structures and bridges. He went to work for Caltrans in Southern California after he graduated from Colorado State University and was instrumental in the emergency design of both temporary and permanent structures following the Loma Prieta earthquake in 1989, which resulted in the timely reconstruction of several heavily traveled highway bridges across Southern California.
He was the Caltrans resident engineer who along with CC Meyers was responsible for the successful early completion of the high-profile emergency contract to replace a washed out 100-foot section of the Interstate 5 double-span bridge over the raging Arroyo Pasajero creek in Coalinga, which shut down a 200-mile section of I-5 in March of 1995 during catastrophic flooding.
Wade went to work for the private sector in 1997. He worked as a construction manager and structure rep for Stimpel-Wiebelhhaus Associates in Redding from 1997-2008, when the collapse of the U,S, economy forced SWA to lay off their entire workforce.
From 2009 until his passing, Wade worked as a construction management consultant, resident engineer and structures rep for Mendoza & Associates, Jacobs and Bowman Engineering Consultants.
Wade loved sports but was most passionate about football and was a lifelong Broncos fan. He participated in the same fantasy football league for more than 25 years with a close group of friends from grade school. We were blessed to be able to attend many NFL games together, visiting Arrowhead Stadium (Kansas City), Reliant Stadium (Houston), AT&T Stadium (Arlington), Qualcomm Stadium (San Diego), Qwest Field (Seattle), Candlestick Park (San Fran), and Lambeau Field (Green Bay) twice. And before we met, he had a blast with friends in New Orleans at the Superdome for Super Bowl XXIV in 1990, despite the Broncos loss.
Wade was preceded in death by his mother, Pat. He is survived by his loving wife Laurel, his father Dean and stepmom Joyce, his sister Brenda, nieces Margo and Grace and nephew Nate, as well as many other family and friends.
In lieu of flowers, please donate in Wade’s name to your favorite dog rescue or shelter. There was not a better, more loving, more patient doggy dad on this earth than Wade.
There are some people in life that make you LAUGH a little louder, SMILE a little brighter and LIVE a little better. Wade was one of those people, without question, and he will be missed always by everyone that was blessed to have known him.
Wendel Davidson, District 7 Construction resident engineer
Courtesy of Wendel's family
Note: The following obituary was shared with District 7 workers on April 12.
It is with deep sadness and a heavy heart that we inform you of the unexpected passing of Wendel Davidson, resident engineer for District 7’s Division of Construction.
Wendel started his career with Caltrans District 12 over 32 years ago and transferred to District 7 in 1999.
He served as an assistant resident engineer starting in 1999. He then accepted a resident engineer position in May of 2023.
Wendel is survived by his wife, Waheeda, and two daughters, Mikaila and Meghan.
The family has set up a GoFundMe account to help with funeral expenses, bills, and necessities for the family. If you are interested in contributing, please use this link.
A funeral service for Wendel was held April 17 at White Emerson Mortuary in Whittier.
Paul Gennaro, District 6 project manager
Courtesy of Paul's family
Note: The following obituary was shared with District 6 workers on April 11.
Paul Gennaro passed away April 9.
Paul worked for Caltrans for 33 years. He began his career as a designer in District 6. He also took assignments in environmental and of course, Project Management.
Within Project Management Paul led as a project manager, and project management support unit chief. Later he would come to Headquarters to be the project delivery coordinator for the Central Region.
Throughout his career, he carried a passion for helping others using his knowledge of design and project management principles and process to help the Central Region program and deliver projects. He was always willing to leverage his experience to provide guidance.
Early on he would help others studying for the PE exam, and later, as a PD Coordinator, would help teach modules for the Design Academy and the Project Managers Academy in addition to being ready to step in on other assignments to improve processes.
Outside of work he had two sons with his wife, Barbara, of 37 years. He enjoyed cycling and fishing in his free time.
Steve Gomez, retired Caltrans worker
Courtesy of Steve's family
Note: The following obituary appeared on the Emmerson Bartlett Memorial Chapel (Redlands) website earlier this year.
Steve Gomez, born on Jan. 21, 1958, in San Antonio Texas, passed away peacefully at home with his loving family on Feb. 27, at the age of 66 in Redlands.
He served in the U.S. Army for 4 years. Steve had a fulfilling career at the Southern California Gas Company and Caltrans.
Steve was a dedicated individual who enjoyed karaoke, dancing, casino nights and traveling in his free time. He will be remembered for his love of these hobbies and his commitment to serving his country.
He is survived by his mother, Antonia D. Gomez, and his children: Frank Gomez, Anna Frietze, Antoinette Higareda, Mario Juarez, and Alicia Juarez. Steve was preceded in death by his father, Frank T. Gomez, and his brother, Tony D. Gomez.
A funeral service to honor and celebrate Steve's life was held at Emmerson’s Bartlett Memorial Chapel in Redlands. The burial took place at Montecito Memorial Park in Colton.
Steve Gomez will be deeply missed by his family, friends and all those who had the pleasure of knowing him. May he rest in peace.
Jose Torres, retired bridge inspector
Courtesy of Jose's family
Retired Caltrans bridge inspector Jose Torres, 66, passed away on Jan. 1 at his home in Rialto.
Born April 29, 1957, in Los Angeles, he resided in San Bernardino County the majority of his life.
He is survived by his wife, Josefina Torres; two brothers, Epifanio Jr. (Cathy) and Arthur Torres; five nephews; six nieces; and several godchildren.
Jose graduated from Cal Poly San Luis Obispo as a civil engineer in 1984. He was a practicing bridge inspector for more than 20 years. Jose worked for Caltrans most of those years and retired from there in 2012.
Services were held at Montecito Memorial Park, Cypress Chapel in Loma Linda.