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Image 1 of / 9 Caption Close Image 2 of 9 Image 3 of 9 Image 4 of 9 Image 5 of 9 Image 6 of 9 Image 7 of 9 Image 8 of 9 Image 9 of 9 Jonathan Vela, aka Aquaman-San Antonio, has died 1 / 9 Back to Gallery

SAN ANTONIO — Jonathan Vela loved Aquaman so much he dressed up as the undersea avenger for many comic book conventions and charity events.

Now San Antonio has lost its very real-world superhero. Vela died early Friday morning after suffering a stroke late last month. He was 38.

UPDATE: Here are the funeral services for Vela.

Rosary/viewing: Monday at 7 p.m. at The Angelus Funeral Home, 1119 N. St. Mary’s St.

Funeral services: Tuesday at 10 a.m. at The Angelus Funeral Home.

Procession and graveside service: Tuesday after funeral services at San Jose Burial Park, 8235 Mission Rd.

As Aquaman-San Antonio, Vela sported the colorful garb of the DC Comics hero right down to the orange top, green tights and golden trident, a larger-than-life embodiment of a character sometimes considered a punch line even in fanboy circles.

Yet Vela always sported his vibrant Aqua-garb with a warm and confident smile, leaving plenty of smiles in his wake.

“His thing of dressing up as Aquaman, and his Aquaman was sure different from everyone else, was just be yourself,” said Vela’s sister Cyndi Vela-Flores. “He always was just be who you are and don’t be afraid to be who you are, don’t be embarrassed, don’t be ashamed.”

That gentle pride resonated with many of his fellow cosplayers (as in costume players) who posted their well-wishes and subsequent grief on his personal Facebook page.

Vela likewise touched the hearts of many sick children in hospitals and at charitable walks and runs, with numerous appearances for causes that included autism awareness and the Red Cross.

“I never understood how he got all the energy, since he really was at anything he could be involved in,” said Jennifer Adams of the locally-based geek culture group GeekVengers geek culture site Geek Binge , who got to know Vela through the convention scene.

“But it was inspiring the way he conducted himself,” Adams said. “It really is what people should strive to be — so giving of themselves and of their time.”

Vela-Flores said her youngest brother collected Aquaman comics since he was in middle school, though he fell in love with the character when he was just a child, eager to rush through the depths like his hero.

“I love swimming underwater,” Vela told the Express-News last year. “I was 3 or 4 years old. That’s how I learned how to swim was swimming underwater. So Aquaman just really kind of appealed to me.”

Many years later, Vela would take his own heroic dip into icy waters at the SeaWorld San Antonio water park Aquatica San Antonio, for a Polar Plunge to benefit Special Olympics.

“My wig came off in the water, but I was able to find it, luckily,” Vela had said of the experience.

A former community relations advocate, Vela was set to start a new career in teaching when he had his stroke in late July. A GiveForward fund was created to help with medical bills, since Vela was uninsured. That campaign will continue as a memorial fund.

“He touched all of us, and it’s devastated a lot of people today,” said Devin Pike, who set up the GiveForward campaign.

An AquaFest fundraiser was also set for Aug. 23 at The Korova (107 E Martin St.) and will likely benefit Vela’s loved ones. Vela is survived by his mother Carla Vela, older brother Jeff Vela and his older sister Cyndi.

Vela-Flores said a prayer vigil is planned for Friday night at Our Lady of Lourdes Grotto, 5712 Blanco Rd. And in addition to a special tribute Saturday at Dallas Comic Con Fan Appreciation Day, Pike said Dallas Comic Con may develop a special cosplay award in Vela’s honor to celebrate other costumed fans who demonstrate similar heroics in their community.

“From the very first time I saw him,” Pike said, “I basically nudged the person next to me and said, ‘That guy is doing it right.'”