Jay Ogden Foley

Foley, Jay Ogden  

 
Jay Odgen Foley, age 91, passed away May 2, 2020 in Rio Rancho, New Mexico. He was born February 20, 1929 to Frank and Stella Foley in South Ozone Park, Queens, Long Island, New York. 
 
He served in the U.S. Army from 1947-1953, in Germany and Korea. In 1953, he joined the U.S. Air Force Reserve. After 26 years of service, in 1983 he retired from U.S. Air Force Reserve as a Captain. In 1957, he graduated from the State University of New York, Teachers College at Cortland with a Bachelors of Science with a Major in Elementary Education. In 1959, he graduated from Thunderbird American Institute for Foreign Trade with a bachelors in Foreign Trade. In 1965, he graduated from Arizona State University with a Master of Arts in Education. In the summer of 1966, he graduated from the University of Texas in Austin Adult Basic Education Teacher Training Institute. His love for the Southwest made him teach in Arizona and New Mexico for most of his career. 

1957 – 1959 – Phoenix, Arizona 

1962 – 1967 – Phoenix, Arizona 

1967 – Chinle, Arizona 

1968 – 1969 – Kayenta, Arizona 

1969 – Jemez House Boys Ranch, New Mexico 

1969 – Antilles Military Academy, Puerto Rico 

1970 – 1974 – State of Arizona, Adult Education 

1974 – Ran for Arizona State Representative in District 17, Phoenix 

1975 – 1979 – Tuba City, Arizona 

1981 – 1998 – Estancia, New Mexico – Special Education 

 
He married Alice Leal on 6/18/1958 in Phoenix, Arizona; they were married for five years and had three children before she passed away on 6/15/1963. He married Maria Delfina Rodriguez on 10/29/1966 in Kearny, Arizona (they met at the University of Texas in Austin in the summer of 1966). They were married for 53 years before Del passed away on 9/7/2019. 

 
Jay loved to tell jokes and make people laugh. His favorite saying was “Son of a Gun,” which he said so often that the grandchildren called him Grandpa Son of a Gun. He loved fixing things. He renovated kitchens, living spaces and project cars; his biggest project was the geodesic dome built in Estancia, New Mexico. He loved his role as a Special Education teacher, often saying that he wished he had found Special Education at the beginning of his career. Jay was very proud of his military service and career. Jay lived in New Mexico for over 40 years. He had a lifelong love of the Southwest which began when his father told him stories of his time serving in the Cavalry stationed in New Mexico. He did extensive research on Arizona and New Mexico, which resulted in a published school workbook titled, “New Mexico’s Thirty-Four Counties,” co-authored with Del. Additionally, he did exhaustive research on New Mexico’s Bishop Lamy, with which he had aspired to write the Bishop’s biography. He adored Del and they were inseparable. He grieved so for her after her death that his heart broke; he passed only eight months after her. 

Preceded in death by parents Frank and Stella Foley; Brothers Thatcher, Richard, and Warren Foley, and Sisters Ruth Foley and Patsy Quinn; Wives Alice Leal Foley and Del Rodriguez Foley; and Son Robert Jay Foley, MD 

 
Survived by daughters Colleen Foley (Dennis Dickens) of Capistrano Beach, California and Alicia Foley of Tucson, Arizona; Sisters-in-Law Juanita Rodriguez and Josie Gonzales of Los Alamos, New Mexico and Libby Lavadie of Salt Lake City, Utah; Brother-in-Law Juan Rodriguez of Santa Fe, New Mexico; Grandchildren Alan Price (Rachael Bale), Gina Champion, Anthony Champion, and Casey James; Great-Grandchildren Lilly, Harper and Paxton Price; and many cherished nieces and nephews. 

The family would like to thank Presbyterian Home Hospice for their caring services provided at the end of his life. 

Services at this time are pending. 

 
Daniels Family Funeral Services Sara Rd. 
505-892-9920