Antonio Alfonso "Tony" Gabaldon (June 3, 1930 – January 3, 1998) was a

Mexican-American Mexican Americans are Americans of full or partial Mexican descent. In 2022, Mexican Americans comprised 11.2% of the US population and 58.9% of all Hispanic and Latino Americans. In 2019, 71% of Mexican Americans were born in the United State ...

teacher and principal, who became a politician and was elected as

Arizona Arizona is a U.S. state, state in the Southwestern United States, Southwestern region of the United States, sharing the Four Corners region of the western United States with Colorado, New Mexico, and Utah. It also borders Nevada to the nort ...

state senator A state senator is a member of a State legislature (United States), state's senate in the bicameral legislature of 49 U.S. states, or a member of the unicameral Nebraska Legislature. History There are typically fewer state senators than there ...

. Gabaldon represented citizens of District 2 in Arizona, which includes Flagstaff, the largest city in northern Arizona, and Navajo and Apache counties. He is the father of author

Diana Gabaldon Diana J. Gabaldon (; born January 11, 1952) is an American author and television writer. She is best known for the book series ''Outlander''. Her books merge multiple genres, featuring elements of historical fiction, romance, mystery, adventu ...

Biography

Antonio Gabaldon was born in

Belen, New Mexico Belén (; ) is the second most populated city in Valencia County, New Mexico, the United States, after its county seat, Los Lunas. The population was 7,360 as of the 2020 Census. Belén is Spanish for Bethlehem. It gained the nickname "Hub Ci ...

, near

Albuquerque Albuquerque ( ; ), also known as ABQ, Burque, the Duke City, and in the past 'the Q', is the List of municipalities in New Mexico, most populous city in the U.S. state of New Mexico, and the county seat of Bernalillo County, New Mexico, Bernal ...

, to Antonio Gabaldon Sr. (1885-1932), a farmer, and his wife, Ines (née Chávez; 1885–1966). He moved to Arizona at the age of thirteen. As a high school student in Flagstaff, he was a distinguished athlete and all-state quarterback. He remained an enthusiastic supporter of athletic events in the community through his later work as a teacher, coach and principal. His accomplishments earned him induction into the Flagstaff High School Hall of Fame.

Political career

Elected to the Arizona senate in 1972, Gabaldon served for 16 years, being re-elected through that period. He served in other political offices, as well as being active in civic life. He was elected as

Coconino County Coconino County is a County (United States), county in the North Central Arizona, North-Central part of the U.S. state of Arizona. Its population was 145,101 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. The county seat is Flagstaff, Arizon ...

supervisor, serving until his retirement in 1995.

Death

Gabaldon died at his home from a heart attack on January 3, 1998, at the age of sixty-seven. He was survived by his second wife Margaret, to whom he was married for 23 years at the time of his death; two daughters (with his first wife, Jacqueline Sykes Gabaldon, Sept. 16, 1930-July 21, 1971): one of whom the bestselling author Diana J. Gabaldon; and four grandchildren. The Arizona Senate passed a resolution celebrating Gabaldon's life, praising his "tremendous ability" in politics, generosity with his "time, energy, and abilities" in voluntary endeavours, and "exceptional cooking skills", which he employed for fundraising purposes and the provision of meals for senior citizens' centers in his district.

Legacy and honors

*He was inducted into the Flagstaff High School Hall of Fame. *Gabaldon Hall, a residential dormitory at

Northern Arizona University Northern Arizona University (NAU) is a public research university based in Flagstaff, Arizona, United States. Founded in 1899, it was the third and final university established in the Arizona Territory. It is one of the three universities gove ...

, was named in his honor."Where We Work, Live, and Learn,"
Northern Arizona University web site.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gabaldon, Tony 1937 births 1998 deaths Democratic Party Arizona state senators American politicians of Mexican descent County supervisors in Arizona People from Belen, New Mexico 20th-century members of the Arizona State Legislature