Deacon Quintana is laid to rest

Intermountain Catholic

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Monsignor Victor Bonnell sprinkles holy water on Deacon Robert Joseph Quintana's casket as a reminder of his and all Catholics' baptismal promises to the Lord. Deacon Quintana died Jan. 18, 2011.

LAYTON — "Deacon Robert Joseph Quintana was a very kind, patient person with a good sense of humor, said Monsignor Victor Bonnell, pastor of Saint Rose of Lima Parish, Layton, at the Mass of Christian Burial. "He was a very loyal deacon who was willing to serve."

Deacon Quintana, 84, died Jan. 18, 2011 in his home. He was born April 27, 1926, in Montrose, Colo., to Frank and Jacobita Maria Maestas Quintana. He married Sinforosa Cordova on May 23, 1948, in Rock Springs, Wyo. He was ordained a deacon in the Diocese of Salt Lake City on Dec. 18, 1977, and served at St. Rose of Lima Parish for 31 years. He also was a member of the Knights of Columbus.

"Deacon Quintana was a very gentle, gracious man and he was universally liked," said Msgr. Bonnell in his homily. "I never heard him say an unkind word about anyone. The Church is stronger as a result of his service and the community is better for his goodness and generosity. He was a family man with relatives here in Utah, California, Colorado and New Mexico, and they were always coming to visit; he enjoyed them all. His family must remember his good example; his separation from them is only temporary."

Deacon Manual Trujillo, who had been Deacon Quintana’s friend for 40 years, said his friend was a great man who will be missed. "He influenced a lot of people to come back to the church, including myself," said Deacon Trujillo. "He was one of the greatest preachers I’ve ever met; he preached by his actions like Saint Francis of Assisi without words. He preached the Gospel always by the way he lived his life. He was a strong Cursillista and was my sponsor into the Cursillo movement many years ago. We worked together on Hill AFB until he retired. We ate lunch together every day and shared scriptures. I continued to see him after his retirement. He was truly a blessing to the Church and to everyone who knew him."

Deacon Quintana was the lay spiritual director for the Cursillo Movement during the 1970s and that is how Fermin Martinez, a St. Rose of Lima parishioner, met him. "We became good friends, and he sponsored me into the Cursillo Movement. I really got to know him and I remember when he became a deacon. He was always cheerful and easy to talk to and he always had a nice, bright mentality about everything. We also worked together as extra ordinary ministers of Communion to the sick."

Deacon Quintana retired after 28 years in the U.S. Navy, including service with the Seabees, and the U.S. Air Force. He worked as a sheepherder, coal miner, farm and field worker, for the railroad and was an employee of the civil service for 34 years, working as an aircraft inspector, crate carpenter and 15 years as custodian at E.G. King Elementary.