Charlie David Ortega October 30, 1957 ~ December 13, 2025 (age 68)

A Memorial Service for Charlie Ortega will be held on Saturday, December 20, 2025, at 2:00pm in the Wheeler Mortuary Chapel in Portales, New Mexico with Keisto Ontiveros officiating.  All of his family and friends will be honorary pallbearers.

With heavy hearts we announce the death of Charlie David Ortega, 68, of Portales, NM. He passed away from this life at North West Hospital in Amarillo, Texas on December 13, 2025, after a valiant battle with cancer.

Charlie was born on October 30, 1957, in Portales, New Mexico to the home of Salomon and Molly Ortega.

For the majority of his life he worked in construction, where he acquired a vast skill set of all things related to carpentry. There was nothing that he could not build or repair. He was always willing to teach others and share his knowledge.

Charlie also loved riding his Harley. For many years you could find Charlie and his wife, Leticia, riding their Harleys around town or going to motorcycle rallies around the state. They also rode their bikes to the Sturgis Motorcycle Rally in South Dakota.

Charlie was always full of life and had a great sense of humor. You could count on him to be in a good mood and cracking jokes. Charlie loved his family dearly and will be deeply missed by all who loved him.

He is preceded in death by his parents Salomon and Molly Ortega, and his nephews Eric Ornelas, Cruz Ontiveros, and Kaleb Aguirre.

Charlie is survived by his loving wife Leticia, his children June (Sammy) Montoya of Las Cruces, NM; Jeffrey Ortega of San Diego, CA; Christian Hernandez of Portales, NM, and Daniel (Claire) Hernandez of Albuquerque, NM; his Granddaughters: Samantha (Daniel) Guerrero, Sariya Montoya, and Serenity Montoya, all of Las Cruces, NM; his Great Granddaughters: Luna Guerrero and Akira Gallagher of Las Cruces, NM; his Siblings: Carmen (Rudy) Ornelas, Brenda Ortega, Bobby (Irma) Ortega, all of Portales, NM, and Ronnie Ortega of Colorado Springs, CO.

To send flowers to the family or plant a tree in memory of Charlie David Ortega, please visit our floral store.