Robert Vega Arellanes

September 30, 1933 ~ January 5, 2025

Bob, age 91 of Rancho Cordova, CA, went on to his final resting place on Sunday, January 5, 2025.

Born in Yuma, Arizona to parents born and raised in Mexico, he grew up in East Los Angeles, left home at the age of fourteen and enlisted in the Navy on his 18th birthday. Between leaving home and joining the Navy, Bob washed butcher trucks, pumped gas in a gas station, and at 17 went to work in the Los Angeles City Market with Morita Produce loading and unloading trucks as a Teamster, a labor union membership card he treasured his entire life.

Bob served four years in the United States Navy, largely in the Pacific, followed by enrollment at Long Beach State University, where his life took a dramatic turn for the better. There he met, and following a four-year courtship married a beautiful, bright, energetic, gifted, woman, Joanne, who would be his companion for sixty plus years of adventure, travel and work, domestically and abroad. At Long Beach State University, he studied and came to appreciate German (though fluent in Spanish), world history, geography, economics, Eugene O'Neill, Thomas Hardy, Erich Maria Remarque, John Dos Passos and many other artists and writers. Following Long Beath State, Bob obtained his Master's in Economics from the University of Oregon.

Along the way, Bob and Joanne were blessed with four wonderful children, Paul (Liz), Peter (Barbara), and Lisa (Ron), and grandchildren Brianne (Connor), Ashley (Dustin), Niko, Haley (Brady), Kate, Cecily and Leah, and great grandson Abel. Added to the family were Luis Barbosa (Cheryl) and their children Rose, Quentin, Bella and Reina. A fourth child, Carol, tragically survived but a week.

Bob had a varied employment career. Besides loading and unloading trucks as a teenager, he delivered dry cleaning to Naval warships anchored off Long Beach, designed roads accessing logging sites in the Willamette National Forest, taught economics at Cal Poly, served as a Peace Corps Associate Director in Northern Peru, followed by Peru Operations Officer with Peace Corps Washington D.C., and Urban Development Office of the Organization of American States. When the opportunity arose to join the administration of Sacramento State University, Bob and family opted to return to California rather than remain in Washington D.C. or relocate to Latin America.

At Sac State, his responsibilities included teaching economics, coordinating the Ethnic Studies Center, serving as Dean of Academic Planning overseeing the introduction of the new statewide general education program, and finally retiring as Dean of Continuing Education. Aside from his official university responsibilities, accomplishments most dear to Bob included overseeing the establishment of the Air Force ROTC Detachment on campus, relocating the Army ROTC program from its off-campus site to an on-campus facility and administering a graduate scholarship grant program on behalf of the Peace Corps for Returned Peace Corps Volunteers. Off campus, Bob was active in the Soccer Community serving in a variety of capacities from local league official to chair of the California Soccer Association North, an organization which inducted him into its Hall of Fame. His days actively involved with the California Soccer Association were some of the happiest of his life.

Bob leaves behind a beautiful family, all of whom made him a proud husband, father, grandfather and great grandfather and enriched his life beyond measure. He came a long way from East Los Angeles.

Remembering Robert Vega (Bob) Arellanes
by Robert L. (Bob) Curry

I met Bob Arellanes sixty-four years ago. It was in September of 196l while we were attending an economics graduate seminar at the University of Oregon in Eugene. By chance we happened to sit next to each other and began to talk. We learned that we had a great deal in common. We were each a CSU undergraduate---Bob was from Long Beach and I was from Sacramento State. We found that prior to our undergraduate days we each spent four years serving in the U.S. military---Bob was in the Navy and I served in the Marine Corps.

From our conversations I learned that he was married to Joanne and she was expecting their first child. We hooked up with the same group of economics graduate students and became very good friends. Oregon’s economics department was an ideal place to study—just the right size and located in Eugene, a great university town. On occasion we did a little too much celebrating and one evening after arriving at their place, we found that Joanne locked us out. While my nickname for him was El Ray de Todo, he was not in charge of “all” that evening.

We spent a good bit of time together including one very memorable night. Joanne was in the hospital giving birth to Paul and Bob was obviously nervous and his nerves propelled him to speed walk back and forth on the pavement surrounding the hospital. He was a lot taller than me and this led me to spending part of the time running just to keep up with him.

Those were good days. When we completed our work in Eugene I went on to teach at Cal State L.A. and Bob eventually landed in Washington, D.C. While in LA, I lived in Monterey Park and Bob was a big help. He helped me to get settled into a community about which he knew a great deal and I knew virtually nothing. I lived in a neighborhood close to where he was raised and went to school.

Over the next few years we kept in touch. Eventually I transferred from L.A. to Sacramento State and then moved to Washington, Bob was with the Peace Corps and I was with the State Department. Little-by-little we began to talk a great deal about Sacramento State and the City of Sacramento. I stressed to him that in my opinion, it would be an ideal place for him to teach and work and for him and Joanne to raise their growing family.

When I returned to Sacramento and became department chair we remained in touch. Things worked out for him to apply to Sacramento State. He was hired to teach economics. But I knew that Bob had more than classroom teaching on his mind. He wanted to work more personally with students particularly in the area of ethnic studies. While at CSUS he branched out from economics to work in various areas including as director of Academic Planning and Continuing Education. Bob become an important part of the CSUS community, and the entire family became part of the heart of Sacramento.

Randy Solorio

Sacramento State is saddened to announce the passing of former Hornet gymnastics coach Randy Solorio following a lengthy battle with cancer. He was 63 years old.

A fixture on the Sacramento State campus for nearly 40 years, Solorio served as an assistant coach, head coach and kinesiology instructor since 1986.

"The man loved Sac State, this was his home, and his family," current head coach Melissa Genovese said. "Randy's impact goes far beyond the gymnastics floor. Some could argue his ballroom dance class was the most popular class on campus. You couldn't go anywhere on campus without someone knowing Randy. His personality and love of life was contagious, and he always looked at the positive side of everything. That outlook and his years of dedication had a profound impact on Sac State gymnastics and every person he met."

Solorio was the head coach of the Hornets from 2016-23. His first season at the helm saw Sacramento State win the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation championship and saw four Hornet gymnasts advance to the NCAA West Regional. That season, the team posted three top 10 overall scores, including the two best scores in school history. His teams went on to add three more top 10 marks and account for over half of the top totals in program history.

Following his retirement, Solorio remained close to the program, frequently stopping by practice and serving as an analyst for the team's video streams of home meets. One of his largest contributions to Sacramento State gymnastics came to fruition this past summer when the team moved into its new training facility. Solorio was instrumental in the creation and design of the facility and worked closely with University Enterprises Inc., from a dream to completion.

"This is a sad day for Sacramento State and we are mourning with his family and loved ones," Director of Athletics Mark Orr said. "Randy was a beloved member of the campus and left a positive impact on countless people. He dedicated a large portion of his life to the University and his legacy will carry on through the hundreds of student-athletes he coached and the staff that he mentored."

Outside of gymnastics, Solorio taught ballroom dancing and weightlifting classes for the kinesiology department and was also a member of the UEI board. Throughout his life he starred in local theater, musicals and commercials in Sacramento. Solorio regularly showcased his vocal skills by singing the national anthem prior to meets where he was accompanied by his wife, Jori, and daughter Kaycee.

Solorio began his tenure at Sacramento State in 1986 as an assistant coach under Kim Hughes. The duo proved to be a great team, guiding the Hornets to seven conference titles. The Hornets also made their first NCAA regional team appearance during the stretch, advancing to the postseason in 1999, 2006, 2007 and 2008.

Those efforts did not go unrecognized as he was named the West Region Assistant Coach of the Year in 1990 and 2006, the USA Gymnastics Assistant Coach of the Year in 1997 and the MPSF Assistant Coach of the Year in 2014 and 2015.

Solorio was elected to the NCAA Women's Gymnastics Committee in 2018 where he helped establish rule changes for the sport and oversaw the national championships. During his time on the committee, the NCAA Women's Gymnastics Championships reached new heights, setting record numbers for viewership and appearing on national broadcast television for the first time.

Prior to coaching, Solorio was a decorated gymnast himself, earning All-America honors on vault, high bar and floor exercise while competing for UC Davis from 1980-82. He finished his academic career at Sacramento State where he earned a bachelor of science in exercise science and master's in sports performance.

Memorial service plans will be announced shortly. Please follow Sacramento State gymnastics social media accounts for updates.