Marcos Plascencia Gonzalez, 53, of Salinas, passed away peacefully at his home surrounded by his loving family on November 24th, 2020. He courageously fought cancer with the strength of a warrior and always remained strong and positive with his faith in God. He is now resting in paradise with our Heavenly Father and Savior Jesus Christ. Marcos was born in Zapopan, Jalisco, Mexico on October 3, 1967 to Salvador and Maria Victoria Gonzalez. Marcos, along with his mother and siblings, moved to the United States in 1976 to reside with their father in Chualar, California. He was 10 years old when he first met Ofelia. He attended and graduated from Gonzales High School in 1985 where his soccer team won the championship and ranked #1 in the Mission Trails Athletic League (MTAL). In 1986, Marcos decided to enlist in the United States Marine Corps. He served under the 1st Battalion, 9th Marines in Camp Pendleton, California from 1986-1990 where he traveled to Alaska, the Philippines, Thailand, Korea, Okinawa, Australia, and Hawaii before returning to his home base in San Diego. Every time Marcos heard the National Anthem, he felt a tremendous sense of pride to have served the United States of America - “Semper Fidelis” - Always Faithful. Marcos was a member of the Marine Corps Reserve upon being discharged as a Corporal and a member of the American Legion Post 31. Marcos made many friends and memories while in the service and was proud to be part of the “Once a Marine, always a Marine” brotherhood. In 1991, Marcos met up again with Ofelia when she was contacting fellow classmates to attend a high school class reunion; she left him a message to call her back. That phone call changed the course of their lives; Marcos called Ofelia back and they talked for 3 hours on the phone. They were engaged that same year, and a year later, Marcos married Ofelia (Fontanilla) in 1992, and became a caring, wonderful father to his daughter, Jocelyn. Over the next few years, Ofelia and Marcos’ family grew with the addition of their three sons. Marcos was a great provider for his family, a loving, proud father raising them with love; he was strict when he needed to be, but was a hands-on father who was always there for his children. Marcos called his kids his “Mexipinos” because they were his mestizos; half Mexican and half Filipino. Marcos balanced life with his faith in God, family, and work. He was grateful for all his blessings in life. Marcos was a devoted husband, father, son, brother, uncle, nephew, compadre, ninong, primo, and loyal friend. Upon his discharge from the military service, Marcos worked in the construction trade as a fire sprinkler installer. His career spanned 29 years beginning with Elie Fire Protection Systems. His last employer was Triad Fire Protection Systems. He enjoyed his work providing people safety and protection, but it wasn’t all business. Marcos enjoyed the friendships he made throughout the years and especially enjoyed the Triad Family company picnics and get-togethers. Marcos was a people person. In his presence, people would gravitate toward him. He would say he was a magnet. He was a kind soul who always made friends wherever he went. If you went out with Marcos, he would start up a conversation with a stranger before you knew it. But if anyone wore something associated with the military, like a Marines veteran, he would go to the person and just say “Semper Fi Brother” and spark a conversation from there. If you needed a dependable handyman who could fix anything, Marcos was your go-to guy. Family, friends, and neighbors would call on him for assistance and he never hesitated to help. He also enjoyed golfing with friends; most recently, Marcos started another hobby - fishing. One of his last outings included fishing on the Santa Cruz Wharf with Vince, Nick, Joanne, and family, which he enjoyed and found relaxing. Marcos cherished the time spent with his family and watching his nieces and nephews grow up. Marcos was fun-loving, the joker/comedian, and the life of the party (at numerous family gatherings on both sides of the Fontanilla and Gonzalez families). He would tell stories and you would have to think twice if he was serious or joking around. At family get-togethers, Marcos was always ready to barbecue. His specialty was his pork spareribs - which everyone loved. A few years ago, Ofelia bought Marcos a “La Caja China” (China Box) where he cooked his first roasted Lechon. Of course, it was a hit with the Filipino side of the family. He would then use “La Caja China” to roast pork spareribs, chicken, tri-tip and Thanksgiving turkeys in it! Marcos felt it was important to give back to his community. Throughout the years, he volunteered with Salinas American Little League as a Team Dad, Coach, Manager, and Umpire when his three sons played baseball. Marcos coached and mentored children in the community by teaching sportsmanship and showing them how to have fun playing the sport, win or lose. Marcos was thankful for being a part of the Salinas American Little League community. Marcos was a sports fan. The Oakland Raiders was his team, where he enjoyed attending tailgate parties and games back in the day. At Oakland A’s games, he was always ready with his glove to catch a ball in the stands. He also enjoyed his youngest son’s favorite team, the Golden State Warriors, while watching games at home. Marcos fought fiercely for two years, living life to the fullest during chemo treatments. He had his ups and his downs but was raring to bounce right back into work. Marcos was not the type of person to sit at home; he always had a positive mindset and his faith kept him going. The amazing part of Marcos’ battle was his bravery and courage; he rarely talked about his battle. Marcos was at peace and was ready to go when his time came. Marcos will be greatly missed by all who were fortunate to have known him. His family hopes that all of us can continue to smile and laugh when we think of him and keep the memories of him alive. While it is difficult for us, as Marcos’ family, to grieve his loss, it is our wish that you pay tribute to his memory by being kind, saying hi to a stranger, making someone laugh, or helping someone in need.... Marcos is survived by his beloved wife of 28 years, Ofelia; his daughter, Jocelyn of Seattle, WA; his three sons, Anthony of Santa Clara, Christopher and Marc of Salinas; his mother, Maria Victoria Gonzalez of Terra Bella and his mother-in-law Caridad Fontanilla of Chualar; his sisters, Susana (Eliseo) Contreras of Riverbank, Berta (Jimi) Jang of Tracy, Adriana (Mike) Castillo of Bakersfield, Evelia Gonzalez of Visalia, Lorena (Ray) Sanchez of Fresno and Marisol (Anthony) Lavia of San Francisco; his sister-in-law, MaryLou Gonzalez of Tulare, and brothers, Francisco (Sally) Gonzalez of Porterville and Salvador Gonzalez Jr. of San Francisco. He is also survived by numerous nephews: Alejandro and Cristian Contreras, Giovanni and Alfredo Gonzalez, Matthew and Nathan Jang, Frankie and Jacob Gonzalez, Andrew and Diego Sanchez, and Antonio Lavia; and nieces, Trinity, Arabella and Sephoria Castillo and Dalia Lavia. He is preceded in death by his father, Salvador Gonzalez and brother Juan Jose Gonzalez. A special thanks to Marcos’ care team, Dr. Gregory Heestand and Andrew Northness, PA, at Stanford Health Care, Dr. Hong Zhao and staff at Salinas Valley Memorial Cancer Care, Salinas Memorial Hospital Infusion Center nurses and staff, and Visiting Nurses Association and Hospice. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to Nancy's Project, P.O. Box 1, Monterey, CA 93942-0001 or donate online at www.nancysproject.org. Visitation will be held Sunday, December 6, 2020 from 1-8PM at the Healey Mortuary, 405 N. Sanborn Rd., Salinas A Rosary will be held at the Mortuary Sunday at 6:00 PM. A Private Funeral Mass (Immediate Family Only) will be held Monday, December 7, 2020 at 10:00 AM at Sacred Heart Catholic Church. Please join the Services on Facebook Live Stream - Sacred Heart Church. An Interment will be held at a later date at the California Central Coast Veteran's Cemetery in Seaside, CA with Military Honors.