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02/25/2024 - Le Grand, California, USA

On the evening of Sunday, February 25, 2024, David Serrano passed away due to complications from stomach cancer at his home in Le Grand with his four children by his side. The son of the late Florencio and Anita Serrano, Dave was 82 years young. 

Born on August 13, 1941 in Coalinga, California, with his twin brother, Daniel, who only lived a short time. Through his formative years, Dave received his education from Plainsburg, Savannah, and a few Chowchilla grammar schools and graduated from Chowchilla Union High School with the class of 1959. He grew up on the Cross Ranch near Highway 99 in Chowchilla where he spent many hot summer nights sleeping on the porch with his father. There were trips to visit his abuelitos in Dairyland and Fresno but Dave spent most of his childhood engineering and playing with contraptions around their farm. Notable among his creations were a raft, built using a wooden airplane propeller and small engine to navigate the creek near his house, and a teepee which nearly burned down the house when he decided to use a can of dry grass for his fire. He was constantly busy, very creative, and forever interested in building things with metal and wood. He always had big projects on his mind but never enough time to finish them.

After high school, he ventured to Fresno and graduated from Fresno State College with a Bachelor of Science in Agronomy. Dave, with the help of friends, created their own camera club at Fresno State. He photographed for the school yearbook, as well as several local weddings, and converted his apartment bathroom and bedroom into his darkroom. He somehow also found time to help build the animal pens at the Fresno State Dairy unit. Dave enjoyed frequenting his tios’ restaurant, the Santa Fe Basque Hotel, as well as hunting squirrels in the rural areas of Herndon for a bit of fun with his buddies. He was actively involved with the Newman Center at Fresno State, where he met RoseAnn Burkart, the love of his life. After mustering the courage to ask RoseAnn if she “wanted to marry a farmer,” Dave and RoseAnn were married May 13, 1967 at the Newman Center with Father Sergio Negro presiding.

Dave and RoseAnn were married for a total of 50 years and brought four children into the world: Christine, Danielle, Matthew, and Michael. Prior to meeting RoseAnn, Dave worked hand-in-hand with his father on their farm, first in Chowchilla and then in Le Grand. Dave did the majority of the shop work and his father did most of the field work. It wasn’t until RoseAnn joined the family farm that Dave and RoseAnn became a true partnership, working alongside Dave’s parents. They took much pride growing almonds, corn, wheat, sorghum, apricots, walnuts, and his favorite, cotton. Dave and RoseAnn also raised a small herd of sheep to keep Dave’s grandfather’s legacy alive. Once the farm was passed down, RoseAnn was an integral part of their farming operation, yet Dave “steered the wagon.” They endured many challenges over the years as a husband and wife farming operation, specifically overcoming tough times in the 80s. Food was top of mind for Dave and RoseAnn and, regardless of their financial status, they never skimped on it. There was always plenty on the table and in their garden to be enjoyed by family and friends alike.

Faith, family and community were all extremely important to David. He made a point of being involved and offering anything and everything to make a difference within his community. Dave’s faith was number one in his life. He was a God-fearing man and proud of his Catholic faith. He served as a lector, Eucharistic minister, and took up the collection most Saturday nights during Mass at Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic Church in Le Grand. He instilled a good life is a faithful life in all of his children, even if they each chose their own way to live that lesson.

Education was an integral part of his service to others, with seats on the Plainsburg Elementary School board and the Le Grand Union High School board, as well as the Agricultural Advisory committee. He held these seats as his children progressed in their education, having a sense of pride in seeing them excel and graduate. Agricultural organizations were also highly important to Dave. He served as president of the Merced County Farm Bureau, was a long standing board member of the Le Grand-Athlone Water District, on the board of directors for the Minturn Cotton Gin, and was a member of Class 12 of the California Ag Leadership program, which afforded him the ability to observe agricultural practices in several countries around the world. He was a member of numerous other agricultural entities and publications.

Dave was actively involved with the Our Lady of Lourdes Parish Dinner, the Le Grand FFA Football Concession Stand, the Le Grand FFA Agricultural Mechanics team, the National Federation of Independent Business, the Fresno and Los Baños Basque Clubs, and the Le Grand Annual Community Day, cooking the beans every year with his son, Michael, by his side.

Over the years, Dave mostly kept busy with his farm. He loved farming and watching plants grow, especially cotton; it brought him lots of joy to see the circle of life. Dave also loved his Basque heritage and was able to travel to the Basque country twice to see where all of his family began. He kept his heritage alive with involvement in the local Basque clubs, but mainly with his large extended family’s Easter gathering that doubled as a big family reunion every year. Hand him one Picon drink and he was happy, and a “sober” Bosko.

David was acknowledged for all the hard work that he put into his family and farm through numerous accolades over the years including the State of California Governor’s Small Business Person of the Year, Merced County Outstanding Tree and Vines Award, Le Grand Community Day Citizen of the Year, and the Merced Feast Farming Family of the Year, as well as being honored by Catholic Charities at the Harvest of Hope. In the 1980s, he was featured with RoseAnn on KRON TV San Francisco in a segment about the agricultural economy’s collapse and in the 2000s on a segment of the cable show, American Trucker. His latest claim to fame was being featured on a local radio and TV commercial for the company Pickett Solar, where he relished comments from family and friends regarding his expression that it “pops his buttons” to save money with the installment of solar panels. 

Dave had many interests including drawing, building models, photography, engineering, World War II history and airplanes, and religiously watching the soap opera “One Life to Live” during his lunchtime. However, the activity that he was most associated with was his daily journaling. Dave kept a journal of his activities along with the daily temperatures and precipitation records. He would wake up every morning to write about what had happened the day before. He documented his entire married life in little 6 x 8 inch At-A-Glance yearly journals. His life revolved around his journal, and writing in it could often impact family plans.

Dave advocated opening his house for friends and family to stay for lunch or even just a glass of water so they could sit and catch up about current events. He and RoseAnn had an open door; not a single person left their house without tired cheeks from laughing and a full belly from all the food and drink that were offered. Dave enjoyed having company and the company always knew that he was just a car ride away for a chat lasting an hour, or sometimes more. Dave was never very good about ending a conversation or saying good-bye. His love and friendship knew no bounds.

Dad, your time here on Earth has ended
And we will miss you everywhere we look.
We will cherish our memories we have of you
And if we can’t remember, we’ll reference your books.
We know you are now with Mom, 
No question that you are holding her in your arms.
We know you will always be by our side,
And within the legacy of Serrano Farms.

Dave was preceded in death by his brother, Daniel; his parents, Florencio and Anita Serrano; and his wife, RoseAnn. He is survived by his four children: Christine Serrano of Le Grand, Danielle Serrano of Chowchilla, Matthew Serrano and his wife Kimberly of Emerald Hills, and Michael Serrano and his wife Erika of Le Grand. Dave also leaves behind five grandchildren: Isabela, William, Catalina, Madison, and a baby girl arriving in May. 

Visitation will be on Wednesday, March 13, 2024 from 4:30 to 6:30 PM at Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic Church in Le Grand with recitation of the rosary following at 6:30 PM. Funeral Mass will be celebrated on Thursday, March 14, 2024 at 10 AM at Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic Church with interment following at Plainsburg Cemetery. As stated in our mother’s obituary, the thirteenth is a special day for our family with numerous birthdays, anniversaries, and special occasions all occurring on that day. Dave and RoseAnn were truly soul mates. Both were born on the thirteenth and both passed on the twenty-fifth; a Sunday of final rest.

David’s children would appreciate donations in his memory be made to Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic Church Building Fund, 14075 E. Le Grand Road, Le Grand, California, 95333; The Carole Stinson Literacy Foundation, P.O. Box 65, Menlo Park, California, 94026-0065; or Catholic Charities Diocese of Fresno, Merced County, 149 North Fulton Street, Fresno, California, 93701.

(published at JayChapel.com)