Born in 1924 and raised in the AZ mining town of Douglas at the Mexican border with her parents Concepción Fernández Moulinet and Antoine Feron Moulinet, she was the youngest of her siblings – Antonio, Gilberto, Juan Luis, Humberto, Austredberto and Eva Villalobos - and her cousins whom her parents raised - Edgardo Fernández, Elisa Larrazolo, Ester Barreras and Eduardo Fernández.
While in Douglas, at a very young age, she married and had one son, Antonio Lomas. Soon after, demonstrating an early streak of independence, she divorced and became a single mother. Confident and resourceful, she owned her own neighborhood grocery store until 1950 when she married Ernesto Parra Villicaña and moved to the mining town of Clifton, AZ. They had two “tesoros” (treasures), Rebecca Villicaña (Timothy McCluskey) and Ernest Villicaña, Jr. (Lupe).
Hilda possessed a quick mind and wit – and was known for her frankness. Creative in everything she did – she was also disciplined and committed to excellence. She not only learned to sew, knit, and crochet but also designed and made Rebecca’s wardrobe until Beca became a most “self-determined” teenager. Hilda learned how to cook from old and true Mexican recipes (her tamales are legendary) as well as from a cookbook by renowned chef, James Beard. She not only took care of Andre, their beloved family poodle but also trained him and learned how to groom him expertly. Not only did she keep an immaculate house, but also developed the architectural plans for a remodel, hiring and supervising the construction staff, then decorating it beautifully and elegantly.
Hilda’s discipline extended into her management of the household and developing investment strategies – she managed and leveraged money, skillfully. She prided herself in how she stretched Ernesto’s paycheck – a single income – through sacrifice, frugal family budgets, strong savings, and various sound and timely investments. Her acumen produced significant financial resources to help parents, siblings, and friends. She made sure that her family had a comfortable lifestyle, provided finances for her children’s college education and still had sufficient money to fund a secure retirement.
Hilda, like Ernesto, loved and breathed for their family and sacrificed so that they might have the “better things in life”, including extra-curricular musical training. Despite their own limited education, they believed in higher education as the path to a better life and their uncompromising expectation of their children was that they would earn college degrees. Hilda was fiercely proud of her Mexican roots and exposed her children to all elements of Mexican culture. She ensured they became fluently bilingual by insisting they only speak Spanish in the home. Hilda used dichos (Mexican sayings) to share her wisdom. One of her favorites was “Hay Mucho Trecho De Lo Dicho A Lo Hecho” (There is a great distance between what is said and what is done). These sayings, the core of her rich heritage, are among the greatest gifts to her family and those who knew her.
She and Ernesto deeply believed in civil rights and workers’ rights – after all, they were a Steelworker’s Union family. After surviving several economically devastating labor strikes and a catastrophic flood, they moved to Phoenix, AZ in 1986 to join their children and grandchildren. Both “Tata” and “Nana” established a life-long, close bond with Rebecca’s son, David Christopher Lubin, and relished their time with their other beloved grandchildren: Ernest’s children Lisette (Hill), Carlos and Elissa Villicaña; and Tony’s children Melissa (Magallanez), Tony, Ed and Monique Lomas.
Hilda sustained profound losses when she lost Tony, her first-born, in 1989, and Ernesto, her husband of 60 years, when he passed in 2010. Hilda’s resiliency, strength, and courage continued to be tested when in 2013, she was stricken with Meningitis at the age of 89. She lost her ability to speak and to walk but willed herself to recover – and did. Even in her last battle – with Alzheimer’s, her personality shone through, maintaining her quick wit and clever tongue – and recalling their childhood with her famous dichos.
Hilda was a force to be reckoned with – she was fearless, determined, and resolute, with an incredible work ethic and zeal for life – and believed that the most valuable asset one had – was their word. She was also an incurable romantic and beyond anything else, loved music and loved to dance. She taught Rebecca and Ernest to dance the two-step in their living room and up until recently, they spent many magical and tender moments dancing together to Mexican boleros (ballads).
Keep dancing, Mom!
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