Dr. John Paul LeDoux

Dr. John Paul LeDoux, age 51 a resident of Nambé and formerly of Dixon, passed away peacefully surrounded by his family on October 19, 2021 after a courageous 4 ½ year battle with ALS (Lou Gehrig’s Disease).

John attended Dixon Elementary School, Pojoaque Middle School and graduated from Pojoaque High School in 1988 where he was a three-year letterman in soccer. After high school, John attended the University of New Mexico where he earned a Bachelors of Arts degree in Journalism and Spanish. During this time, he participated in a study abroad program at the University of Valencia in Spain that would greatly influence his future career choice.  He also earned a Masters of Arts degree in Spanish from UNM. Later, he completed his PhD in Spanish with an emphasis in Chicano Literature from Arizona State University in Tempe. His dissertation explores the use of humor as a form of resistance to mainstream assimilation in the contemporary Spanish-Language short stories of writers from Río Arriba County, New Mexico.

Professionally, John taught classes in Spanish language, literature and film at UNM, ASU, Earlham College and Indiana University-East in Richmond, Indiana. He spent 19 years as an Assistant and Associate Professor of Spanish at Santa Fe Community College, including three terms as the chairman for the Department of World Languages. He was an advocate for immersion language learning through study abroad programs and lead or co-lead trips to Morelia, Oaxaca, Zacatecas and San Cristóbal de las Casas in Mexico. Due to his disability, he retired from SFCC in 2019.

John loved traveling with his precious family and spending time with his extended family and friends alike. He enjoyed laughing and making people laugh. He was an avid golfer, bicyclist and trout angler. He was also fond of coaching youth soccer and little league baseball. He was a passionate sports fan who closely followed teams from his alma maters the Lobos and the Sun Devils, as well as the Las Vegas Raiders, Philadelphia 76ers, Washington Nationals and Valencia Club de Fútbol.

John was preceded in death by his maternal grandparents Frank and Beroniz (Cona) Archuleta; paternal grandparents Amadita (Emma) and John Carlson; and Alberto LeDoux, as well as first cousin, David Martinez, who was like a brother to him.

John is survived by his beautiful and loving wife Reina of 27 years together and almost 20 years of marriage, his precious children Lourdes and Matías and the family dog Ozzie. Other survivors include his parents Dr. Eugene and Jennie LeDoux of Dixon; brothers Mark and wife Paula of Nambe; and Matthew and partner Pauline Martínez of Chimayo. Special aunt who is like a second mother to him, Ida Archuleta of Dixon. Father and mother-in-law Harold and Roberta Martínez of La Mesilla; grand-mother-in-law, Matilde Quintana of Santa Cruz, brother-in-law Harold Martínez and wife Stephanie of Española; sister-in-law Angela Edwards and husband Yussef of La Mesilla. His Godson & nephew Samuel LeDoux of Baltimore, Maryland, Goddaughters & nieces Mikayla Martínez and Mía Martínez. Nephews and nieces Nicholas LeDoux of Las Vegas, Nevada, Lukas LeDoux, Andrew Martínez, Marcos Martínez, Gabriel Edwards and Mallana Martínez. Compadres Jerrold and Ranada Baca of Arroyo Seco and Michael Martínez of Chimayo; madrina Loretta Valdez of Embudo and padrino Daniel Sánchez of Santa Fe, and numerous aunts, uncles, cousins and friends.

A memorial mass will be celebrated on Friday, October 29, 2021 at 1:00 p.m. at Holy Cross Catholic Church in Santa Cruz.  A private burial will take place at a later date.

The family would like to thank the ALS Association of New Mexico, UNM ALS Clinic, and all of the caretakers that supported John through this illness.

In lieu of flowers, the family suggests memorial contributions be made in his name to the ALS Association of New Mexico, 2309 Renard Place SE, Albuquerque, NM 87106 or at www.alsanm.org or the Team Gleason Foundation at www.teamgleason.org. The family of Dr. John Paul LeDoux has entrusted the care of their loved one to the DeVargas Funeral Home & Crematory of the Espanola Valley. 505-747-7477 www.devargasfuneral.com

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