Lupe Rico

A funeral service will occur Friday, January 7, 2022 from 10:30 AM to 11:30 AM at St. George Catholic Church, 505 North Palm Aveue, Ontario, CA 91762. A committal service for Lupe will be held Friday, January 7, 2022 from 12:45 PM to 1:15 PM at Riverside National Cemetery, 22495 Van Buren Blvd, Riverside, CA 92518. A reception will occur Friday, January 7, 2022 from 3:00 PM to 5:00 PM at Draper Mortuary, 811 North Mountain Ave, Ontario, CA 91762.

Fond memories and expressions of sympathy may be shared at www.Draper-Mortuary.com for the Rico family.

Lupe Rico, age 82, of Ontario, California, passed away on Thursday, December 9, 2021. Lupe was born February 21, 1939, in Los Angeles, to parents Manuel Rico and Lena Vasquez, raised in Norco. Mother of eight children, preceded in death by her daughter, Susan Guzman, and her husband, Ernest C. Felix; her sister, Esther Hernandez; her brother, John Rico. Survived by her daughter, Lisa Don; her sons, Art Jr., Adam, Allen, Alex, Andre and Antoine Guzman; her sisters, Nellie Garcia, Beatrice Bravo, Helen Costello; her brothers, Manuel Rico and Ralph Rico; her grandchildren, Arthur (3rd), Angel, Mara, Emil, Marco, Jeffrey, Nicolas, Alexis, Natalee, Sabrina, Noah, Alissandria; her great grandchildren, Arthur (4th), Adrina, Adrianna, London; and her great-great grandchildren, Alaya and Alina.

When you walked into Lupe’s house, you knew right away who she was. You saw her love of the arts, in her shelves full of books, the art on the walls, including her collection of paintings of red barns, family photo albums, sewing and crocheting, her latest quilting project, showing fabrics she had lovingly collected and arranged, and then meticulously embroidered. All of her creations were incredible pieces of art. Similarly, her front and back yard gardens were displays of herbs, trees and flowering plants, and in between she would place eclectic items she would find from thrift stores and garage sales which added an artistic flare to the gardens.

When her kids lived at home, there was always something on to liven her home, mostly music playing on the radio. If the TV was on, it was always Wide-World of Sports, Wonderful World of Disney, or something quirky like the Outer Limits or Twilight zone, or old school “B” movies. Lupe’s children could never change the channel on the TV, and if they tried, they were usually encouraged to go outside, as Lupe discouraged any sort of sitting around, and preferred her kids having adventures and connecting with neighborhood kids for a pickup game of some sort. Even if the kids sometimes got into mischief, Lupe believed that was okay, since this is where they would learn right and wrong and how to make choices. Similarly, Lupe thought the family’s many pets, which included cats, dogs, turtles, and many others, should have the freedom to roam free around the house and in the gardens, believing that pets needed to make choices too.

Lupe loved adventures as well. Even if just a quick trip to Target, Joanne’s, Home Depot, nurseries, thrift stores or garage sales, Lupe loved scoring a good deal, and if the deal was really good, she loved stocking up and filled her van with her finds. There were also bigger adventures, getting the whole family into her VW bus (or later the Toyota Previa van) and taking family trips to the outdoors, such as Lytle Creek, Lake Silverwood, beaches, or extended-family gatherings in Norco. When Ernie joined the family, he joined in these adventures, such as to the trailer on the beach in Ensenada, to the horse races, to casinos, and to 4th of July fireworks at Pitzer College. Ernie was the love of her life, she adored him, and he adored her, a romantic love that spanned decades, to their last breath and beyond.

Lupe’s other great love was in lifelong learning, which she shared with her family. Lupe was always ready to discuss her latest favorite book, or to talk about her work. When the kids were little, Lupe started as a volunteer at the kids’ HeadStart program, and ended up going to college, and graduated from University of La Verne getting a degree with an emphasis in Early Childhood Education. This led to having a decades long career at Christ Church as a HeadStart teacher and at the Pomona Unified School District as an educational resource specialist. Lupe could always talk for hours about her current work or students and loved to discuss child development theory. Throughout her career at PUSD, she loved mentoring other child development teachers, and she was so proud when she talked about how these young women were growing, as she had, from single moms with minimal job prospects, into empowered women providing for their families and making a difference for the hard-hit children and families in their community.

When Lupe’s family think of her, they will always cherish these memories of how beautifully she lived. They will always carry Lupe in their hearts.