Perciliano (Percy) Manuel Montoya, beloved husband, son, brother, and father passed away peacefully on Tuesday morning, February 24, 2026 in Sandy, Utah. He was born on February 1, 1932, in Espanola, New Mexico to Celestino and Maria Luisa Montoya. He had a keen mind, a true scientist by heart, interested in space, electronics, and computers as all of these were developing in the sixties and seventies. Percy was very approachable, kind, and considerate. Always willing to help others, especially troubleshooting technical computer problems. He was an avid photographer and won many awards for his beautiful prints. Percy loved Latin jazz music. He played the drums with his sons, brothers, and nephew. No matter where he was, there was always a drum set or congas available so he could sit in with the band!
Percy loved his family. He was the eldest of seven children and grew up in Leadville, Colorado. He lived a remarkable life working overseas for Bendix Field Engineering as a contractor to NASA during the Gemini, Apollo, and Sky Lab manned space flights and later at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory working on numerous space probe missions. He married Elizabeth Gallegos in 1954 and they became the proud parents of two sons, Tom and James. The family lived overseas in Quito, Equador and the Canary Islands, Spain from 1964 until 1974 where Percy worked at NASA tracking stations. Elizabeth and Percy were later divorced. Percy continued working overseas at tracking stations on Ascension Island and in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia where he met Charito Varela. They were married in the Philippines in 1988 and relocated to Upland, California where they welcomed a son, Charles. They lived there for 9 years. When Percy retired they relocated again to Draper, Utah. The Montoyas were active members of St. John the Baptist Catholic Church.
Percy was preceded in death by his father, Celestino and mother, Maria Luisa; wife, Charito Montoya; brother, Ross Montoya; sister, Josephine Montoya; and sister Christina (John) Lujan. He is survived by his three sons, Tom Montoya, James (Laura) Montoya, and Charles (Brittney) Montoya; sister, Mary (Robert) Whitfield; brother, Joe (Rosella) Montoya; sister, Juanita (Jose) Gonzales; and numerous nieces and nephews.
A visitation will be on Friday, March 6, 2026 at 12:00 pm and a rosary prayed at 12:30 pm at St. John the Baptist Catholic Church, 300 East 11800 South, Draper. The Funeral Mass will be celebrated at 1:30 pm also at the church followed by interment at Elysian Burial Gardens, 1075 East 4580 South, Millcreek.
