Joel (“Daniel”) Valencia was born in Curimeo, Michoacan on December 8, 1929 and moved to South San Francisco in 1959. He spent much of his life splitting his time between his 2 homes. His life was filled with many stories, among some of them were about the time he spent horseback riding, the friends he made at the horse race track, his family and friends, and the beautiful people and “fiestas” in his hometown. His memory and attention to details were impeccable even through his last days.

Joel married Bertha Barrientos in 1947,who predeceased him in 1998. Together they had 7 children, Jose “Pepe” Valencia (Widow, Ofelia), Dionicio Valencia (Rosa), Daniel Valencia (Carmen), Ana Arellano (Dario), Javier Valencia (Elvira), George Valencia (Laurie), Betty Reyes (Oscar). He went on to have 17 grand-children, 19 great-grand-children and 2 great-grand-children on the way. In 2000, he remarried Socorro Arellano.

He was a man of many friends, and we hope to see many of them at his memorial services Sunday, September 10, 2023 at Garden Chapel Funeral Home in South San Francisco at 6 PM for a rosary. Funeral services will be Monday, September 11, 2023 at All Souls Church in South San Francisco at 12:15 and burial to follow at Holy Cross Catholic Cemetery in Colma.