Carlos Alexander Mendez

Carlos Alexander Mendez was born April 17, 1968, in San Angelo, Texas. He passed from this life on November 7, 2025, at Medical Center Arlington in Arlington, Texas.

Carlitos (little Carlos) was the first of three children born to Carlos and Juanita Mendez, who moved to the United States from Monterrey, Mexico, while she was pregnant with Carlos. He started kindergarten knowing mostly Spanish, but finished at San Angelo Lake View High School as an honor graduate.

He discovered journalism in high school and studied journalism and communications at Angelo State University, working as a sports writer for the San Angelo Standard-Times through college and beyond. Under the tutelage of Mike Lee, Roy Ivey, Camille Wheeler, and Schuyler Dixon, he honed his craft. Carlos received multiple writing awards, including being named one of the Top 10 Sports Feature Writers in the United States.

Carlos married Cynthia “Cindy” Sellman on Dec. 20, 1997, at the Hotel Cactus in San Angelo. They had a wonderful life together with their three children: Crystal Clay, Samuel Mendez, and Luke Mendez. Highlights were family trips to New York in 2019 and Hawaii in 2021.

He was a dedicated and loving husband and father, and instilled in his children the love of God, respect for others, a strong work ethic, and the value of family.

After leaving the Standard-Times, Carlos worked as a sports copy editor at the San Antonio Express News for a year before accepting a job at the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, where he spent almost 20 years covering high school sports, the Texas Rangers, NASCAR, the Dallas Cowboys, and Texas Christian University.

He then went to work as a researcher and writer for Panini America, where he has spent the last seven years.

Carlos discovered running a couple of years ago, and had joined friends for Saturday morning runs, five 5Ks, one 10K, and one half-marathon. He was dedicated and tried to run every day.

He also was a member of a small book club with friends who enjoyed reading, dinners together, deep discussions, and fellowship. These became some of his closest friends.

Carlos loved to travel and do for others. He was able to combine those things by taking his sons to Honduras on mission trips, and chaperoning many Youth Group trips to Colorado, New Mexico, and Galveston.

The Mendezes loved to host and enjoyed having the CrossPoint Youth Group over many times for dinner, games, and devos.

Carlos’s interests and hobbies varied from reading, space, sports, running, cooking, animals, and movies, to name a few. Carlos was intelligent, kind, welcoming, and loving to all.

True to his giving nature, Carlos was an organ donor. Every part of him that could be donated was sent to others in need through Life Gift Organ Donations. We are comforted knowing that parts of him will live on and help with research education.

Carlos was preceded in death by his mother, Juanita Mendez; his maternal grandparents, Antonio and Camila Andrade; his paternal grandmother, Maria Luisa Arellano; one brother-in-law, Bobby Sellman; and one niece, Beverly Sellman.

Carlos is survived by his wife, Cindy; one daughter, Crystal Clay (Nicholas Bobys) of Jersey City, N.J.; two sons, Samuel Alexander Mendez and Luke William Mendez, both of Arlington; his father, Carlos Mendez of San Angelo; one brother, Daniel Mendez (Claudia) of Keller; one sister, Jennifer Mendez (John Chen) of Austin; three nieces, Brianna Mendez (Thomas Linebarger) of Denver, Colorado, Victoria Borsatto (Marco) of Yukon, Oklahoma, and Micaela Mendez of San Marcos; two nephews, Matthew Mendez of Fort Worth and Wayne Sellman of Mart; three great-nieces, Katie Sellman, Ruby Sellman, and Harper Houston, all of Salado; and many special aunts, uncles, cousins, and dear friends.