Omar Gallardo’s younger sister remembers bothering her brother because of the way his friends and acquaintances talked about him, practically as if he were walking on water.

She says Gallardo’s brothers were so in her shadow that they joked that they had no identity of their own but were simply “Omar’s sisters” to most of the community.

But Merlinda Gallardo said she understands and appreciates the important role her brother played in Sonoma County and in the lives of those around him. He was, he said, “larger than life.”

Omar Gallardo, a proud Chicano and community organizer whose legacy of political and community advocacy spanned three decades, lived to support others and give voice to those who were not in a position to speak for themselves, he said.

From his youth organizing Latino students, to his work with Latino farmworkers and children, to his service at the Graton Day Labor Center and, most recently, with the environmental education and conservation nonprofit LandPaths, Gallardo lived in the service. His mentors impressed him with the idea that each generation made way for the next and had an obligation to “keep your foot in that door so it stays open,” he once said.

Since his death last week at age 49, the outpouring of gratitude from the legions whose lives he touched only underscores his impact, Merlinda Gallardo said.

“On Sunday, after his services, people kept saying, ‘Thank you for sharing Omar with us,’” he said. “He just set out to be a part of as many people’s lives as he could.”

Warm and funny, he had a “huge heart” and a “super tender and sweet” side, said those who loved him. He is survived by two children, Tandee, 13, and Erandi, 8, who were fundamental in his life with his wife, Norma Lázaro Hernández.

Gallardo was born in Michoacán, Mexico in 1975, the first of five children and the only son. He spent his early years there, although his father worked much of the time in the northern California lumber industry.

From ages 5 to 10, Gallardo and his family lived in Santa Rosa, a difficult period defined in part by an accident that disabled his father and left him increasingly unable to work.

Gallardo was 10 years old when her family moved back to Michoacán for five years before returning permanently to Sonoma County, where her mother worked in vineyards and wineries.

As a student at Geyserville High School, she benefited from a series of influential Spanish-speaking teachers and staff who encouraged her participation in Ballet Folkérico and helped shape her interest in Chicano education and culture.

He came of age during a time of political conflict that included the campaign for California’s Proposition 187, which in 1994 threatened to prohibit undocumented immigrants in California from using a range of public benefits.

Gallardo led student marches protesting the proposal and was also active on behalf of the United Farm Workers Union, offering translation services when he was young. He also made a last-minute trip to Delano, California, in 1993, for the memorial march in honor of UFW leader Cesar Chavez, an event that drew about 35,000 supporters.

He participated for several years in the Adelante summer program at Santa Rosa Junior College and the Latino Student Congress at Sonoma State, and eventually attended both institutions, earning a degree in history with plans to become a teacher.

But Gallardo also had the opportunity to serve for eight years in the California Mini-Corps Program, working with migrant students in outdoor education, which included week-long summer camps.

It was a foreshadowing of his later years at LandPaths, where he worked for 12 years, most recently as new audiences manager. He was an integral part of the development of the Bayer Farm community gardens and urban park in southwest Santa Rosa, and worked extensively to engage Spanish-speaking communities in outdoor activities, through youth programs, field trips. Yosemite camp and other programs.

LandPaths CEO Craig Anderson says Gallardo brought dignity to the job “but left a lot of room around him for other people to feel worthy.” Gallardo was so committed that he once almost missed the opportunity to go to the Obama White House for a screening of a documentary in which he appeared because he was supposed to lead a trip to Yosemite. In the end, he was able to do both, Anderson said.

“He graciously guided much of the evolution of LandPaths over the last dozen years in how to reach, expand and sustain the broader community,” Anderson said.

Omar Gallardo/Sonoma County Chicano Chronology (Part 1)

Gallardo also spent four years mentoring students in Santa Cruz County before returning to Santa Rosa to become a site coordinator and organizer at the Graton Day Labor Center. He worked there for five years before being hired by LandPaths.

Veteran community organizer and close friend Davin Cárdenas, now organizing director of North Bay Jobs with Justice, describes Gallardo as “a critical bridge” between generations of Latino activists.

He recalled meeting Gallardo at Sonoma State University around 1999, when Gallardo was president of the Chicano Student Movement of Aztlán, or MEChA, program on campus. Gallardo, he said, welcomed him and involved him in a way that marked the trajectory of his life.

“He led by example and had such energy that it was contagious, and you wanted to be a part of whatever he was a part of,” Cardenas said. “We learned from him and he was always a teacher. I am one of many, many, many who had the same story. “We are really grateful for him.”

Gallardo was also a devoted Aztec dancer, founding his own dance group, Danza Azteca Xántotl de Santa Rosa, more than a decade ago and performing at gatherings and celebrations.

Three years ago, Gallardo learned that she had amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, or ALS, a degenerative motor neuron disease that made it difficult for her to do many of the things she loved. It was a battle he and his wife kept largely private.

He died on October 23 from complications related to the disease.

Merlinda Gallardo said his loved ones now like to think of him walking through the forest, through the fog, as he appears in a photo taken by a friend a few years ago.

In addition to his wife and children, Gallardo is survived by his mother, María Luisa Gallardo, of Santa Rosa; sisters Marilú Gallardo, Olga Gallardo and Blanca Gallardo, all of Santa Rosa, and Merlinda Gallardo, of Windsor.

A private service was held Sunday, but the family hopes to hold a public celebration of Gallardo’s life in November.

You can contact staff writer Mary Callahan (she/her) at 707-521-5249 or [email protected]. On X (Twitter) @MaryCallahanB.