Texas Poker Community Mourns Loss of Empire Poker's Edward Garcia at Age 37
On November 27, the Texas poker community lost valued member Edward Garcia, one of the primary operators at the Empire Poker Club.
Born September 29, 1986, Garcia was well-known in Houston poker circles. At the end of November, the Empire Poker Club took a moment to offer a toast in remembrance.
“He was the GM basically, but he was the literal definition of selflessness,” Matt James said of Garcia. “Always put everyone else that worked there ahead of himself. Just an all-around great guy and H-Town poker legend.”
Joseph Stevens said: “There were always better games, cheaper games, better food, better rooms – but none of that s*** matters if you treat your costumer right, and Ed, believe it or not, understood this more than just about anyone in poker. You could learn a lot about how he treated his loyal player base. I believe this will be his poker legacy … Ed was always thinking of his friends and family who he loved more than anything.
Poker Royalty’s Jesse Fullen, who is originally from Texas told PokerNews:
“Despite living in Las Vegas for nearly a decade, the Houston poker scene taking place there is near and dear to my heart, so I was just as shocked as anyone to hear that someone who gave so much to that community had passed away. Garcia left so many in pain with his loss. He wasn’t just a manager at the Empire Poker Room in Katy, Texas, he was someone who brought humor and smiles to everyone he was around at a poker table.”
Fullen continued: “Edward was proud of his staff and the rooms he worked in and it showed. Empire could have been known as Edward’s Katy as that’s how it felt to so many. While I wasn’t super close to Edward after moving away from Houston, we stayed friends on Facebook and I made sure we visited his room while taking the PokerNews Texas Road Trip and when we visited, he treated us like kings. Houston Poker is suffering a major loss losing someone as kind, fun, and amazing as Edward, but at the same time, Houston Poker was lucky to have such a great person bringing cash games and tournaments to life. We will miss you, Edward.”
Anthony Carnevale said: “One of the coolest. You will be missed, never forgotten.”
Garcia will be laid to rest this week with a viewing and service from 5:30-8 p.m. on Tuesday, December 5 at Garden Oaks Funeral Home in Houston. The following day from 9-11 a.m. a Celebration of Life will be held, and then at Noon Garcia will be laid to rest at Forest Park Southwest Cemetery.
PokerNews offers its condolences to the family and friends of Garcia and the Houston poker community.
