Gaona passed away at his home on May 17

ATASCADERO — The Atascadero community showed up in a big way to celebrate the life of Adrian “Bubba” Gilberto Gaona on Sunday, June 9 at Rocky Canyon Ranch. Gaona passed away on May 17. It was clear from the stories told and the tears shed at his celebration of life that his life had a huge impact on the Atascadero community as a whole.

At the start of the celebration, where people shared their memories of Adrian, his father, Gilbert Gaona Sr., rang the Greyhounds bell that was made for Adrian to ring at all the Atascadero High School (AHS) games 35 times. Once for each year of Adrian’s life.

“We’re very, very grateful for your love for Adrian, and we’re grateful to be able to celebrate his life today. Today’s going to be a good day. It’s going to be a day where we can share memories, and it’s going to be a sad day, too,” said Adrian’s brother, Jerry Gaona.

Adrian’s best friend, Joseph Harms, gave the Eulogy. The two met when they were both being fostered by the Gaonas.

“We were finally both in a loving home together and as time went on, we got closer. There wasn’t ever a time when we were out that I wasn’t behind Adrian pushing him. Those hills got tough sometimes. That never changed no matter how old we got,” added Harms.

Adrian was born with spina bifida and used wheelchairs throughout his life. Harms also reminissed that when Adrian would get new one, they would both ride around and pop wheelies together.

Adrian was with multiple foster families before the Gaonas started fostering him when he was 11. The family already had six children of their own by then.

“He [Adrian] bonded with us right away. When he went back to the last family that he was with before he came to us, he just made it a living hell for them so he could move in with us,” said Adrian’s dad, Gilbert.

“We had him when he was 11 years old, and he was getting to be about 17 years old, and I told his siblings, I said, ‘we’re going to adopt Adrian. Is it okay with you guys?’ They said, ‘adopt him? What do you mean? We thought he was adopted already,'” continued Gilbert about when they officially adopted him.

Adrian’s mom, Jan who was also adopted, always looked at herself and Adrian as being chosen by their families instead of adopted. The two of them shared a special bond.  

At the celebration, everyone expressed how Adrian prioritized relationships and staying connected to the people in his life. Adrian’s fiance, Claudia Lopez, gave a moving speech expressing her love for the man she was going to spend the rest of her life with. 

Friends and family also told many a story about times when Adrian would go out of his way to make sure that he was there for them, from small things like sharing memes to showing up at their kid’s sports games.

Adrian was a huge fan of sports, and his favorite teams were the Raiders, Dodgers, Lakers, and USC. But many people knew him for always being at the Atascadero Greyhound games every Friday. In fact, there were small bells on all ofthe tables for guests to take home in memory of Adrian. A special bell was made and given to AHS football coach Vic Cooper, who was the one who made Adrian the bell that he would ring every Friday night during football season. Cooper said that they would continue with the tradition in honor of Adrian going forward.

“He’s taught my kids that it was Taco Everyday, not just Taco Tuesday. So today, we will honor him and have tacos,” said his sister Katherine Belt.

Before the tacos were consumed, more stories were shared that showed off Adrian’s funny and snarky side. Includingjokes he would play on his family and friends. People also remininced on how Adrian remembered people. It didn’t matter if he met you through friends, his job at Colony Cinemas (formerly Galaxy), or at football games, if he saw you in a crowd he would go out of his way to say hello.

Adrian also had special relationships with not only his siblings, their spouses, and his parents but also with all of his nieces and nephews. He spoiled them with love, attention, and just the right amount of constant teasing and pranks.

“One thing that I would like to share about Adrian that stands out to me most importantly is how he cared so much for every single person in our family. He had his own unique relationship with everybody, including me. It has taught me specifically how to unconditionally love people,” said Adrian’s nephew, DaVanté Morrison.

During the celebration of life, the family also collected money, which will be used for a remembrance memorial in Adrian’s honor at Memorial Stadium at Atascadero High School.

Featured Image: The community showed up to remember Adrian Gaona and his lasting impact on Atascadero. Photo by Rick Evans.