Obituary of Elvira Gates

Elvira “Vi” Gates was a sister, mother, grandmother, and great grandmother with a passion for adventure and travel and a sense of style that set her apart. She was called home to be with the Lord suddenly on Wednesday, January 13th 2021 at the age of 79. Elvira was born on September 2nd, 1941 in the city of Tyler, Texas to Catherine Mackey Caldwell and Hosea Caldwell. She was the eighth child born of 16 to Catherine and Hosea. Elvira accepted Christ at a young age and remained an active member of the church throughout her life. Anyone who knew Elvira knew that she had a thirst for knowledge and a love for education. She was a graduate of Cochise College with Associate of Arts degrees in criminal justice and hospitality and also a graduate of Wayland Baptist University with a Bachelor of Arts degree in social work and counseling. Elvira also remained active within her community throughout the years. She was a lifetime member of the NAACP, Black Pilots of America, and Southwest Association of Buffalo Soldiers. Her ever-present proclivity for helping those in need led her to contribute to fundraisers and organizations regularly, with a focus on the arts in Southern Arizona. With this goal in mind, she founded her own production company, Vi Gates Productions, which she used to produce and direct shows in her community that featured fashion, theatre, dance, and song. Every show was a direct reflection of her extraordinary flair, impeccable fashion sense, and love for others. Elvira spent her life doting on family and friends and encouraging every person she came in contact with to live their best life possible. Her life will be celebrated and she will be lovingly missed by a vast amount of people whose lives she touched over the years. These include her siblings, Noel, Margaret, Margie Lois, Hosea, Dillard, Eldoris, Theldoris, and Mabledoris, her children, Vickie, Alvira, Juarquin, Francine, Sonja, Donald, Arquesia, Harriet, and Stanley, and a host of grandchildren, great grandchildren, cousins, nieces, nephews and friends. Elvira is preceded in death by her mother, Catherine, her father, Hosea, and her siblings, Norris, Delois, Ophel, Lora Dell, Bernadette, Adam James, and Charlotte.