Rita Escobedo

When Rita Escobedo walked into the room, those in her company felt energy, an enthusiastic spontaneity. This was just one example of who Rita was and how she impacted those around her. Rita was a clever and gregarious person who always sought out the finest attributes in other people. It was as if Rita wanted to share all of their experiences, revel in their lives and celebrate their discoveries. Rita was tireless and had boundless enthusiasm that would serve her well throughout her life.

Rita was born on May 24, 1924 at home in Tlaltenango, Zacatecas. She was the daughter of Manuel Escobedo and Maria Gonzalez. Always at the ready with a good joke, she grew up to be quite a humorous person. While some who knew Rita might describe her as an idealist, her friends and family understood well that Rita was always in pursuit of life’s endless possibilities and opportunities available to her.

Rita was raised with seven siblings. She had Felipe, Trinidad, Miguel, Antonio, Manuel, Petra and Isabel. Rita was very accepting and supportive of her family. She was perceived as the central person in her family in terms of keeping communication open between the family members. Whenever discord or tension arose within the home, Rita was typically the member who brought about resolution and harmony. These traits served Rita well in her adult life and, along with her wit, outgoing personality, and understanding of others, drew the admiration of many who knew her.

As a young girl, Rita was able to empathize and identify with a vast array of people and personality types. This quality drew her into a diverse group of friends and acquaintances. Rita was intelligent and had little trouble getting along with her peers. She was almost always the first to jump in when it came to playing games or participating in other childhood activities. In her spare time she liked sewing and crochet. Rita had the ability to find amusement with almost any activity she and the many childhood friends she shared might discover.

On 1956 Rita married Juvenal Gomez at Virgen Mary of Tlaltenango, Zacatecas. Rita's skill at “building bridges” played an important role in her ability to make her new family happy. She was quite sensitive towards Juvenal's needs, showing her constant concern and fondness. Rita was tenderhearted and sensitive, qualities that served her well in helping to nurture her family.

Rita was a natural and creative parent who was willing to provide her family with all sorts of new and interesting experiences. For Rita, parenting was a particularly enjoyable and pleasurable part of her life. Every activity, from chores to bedtime routines, became a game in the Escobedo home. Rita's skill at understanding her children's feelings, her sensitivity to their needs, and her gift for gentle persuasion enabled her to find novel solutions to any problem or situation that might crop up. Rita was blessed with two children: one daughter Bertha, and one son, Antonio. They were also blessed with five grandchildren, Irma, Genaro, Salvador, Tony Jr. and Adrian. She also had seven great-grandchildren.

Rita was uplifted by new ideas and was excited by life’s possibilities, traits that made her an exceptional worker. Her primary occupation was being a housewife. Rita was enterprising, inventive and working against deadlines seemed to energize her. Rita had the uncanny ability to identify a win/win solution to just about any problem, possibly because of her gift for insight. Rita's fellow workers saw her as a supporter and a mentor.

Because Rita loved to have a broad variety of activities in her life, she took advantage of the opportunity to pursue numerous hobbies. Her favorite pursuits were crochet and going to school. Rita had a knack for being able to multi-task in order to create time for all of her favorite pastimes. However, Rita's ever-present concern for others always took precedent.

Rita's love of improvising in her daily life was a perfect fit for her enjoyment of traveling. Her favorite vacations were ones that were not planned. Traveling in a casual manor fit her personality well. Excited about seeing changing scenery and constantly looking for the enjoyment life could offer, Rita took her vacations seriously, well, as seriously as she possibly could. Favorite vacations included Puerto Vallarta.

Rita was a lover of animals and cherished her pets. Chispita a Bishon Frisse, was a best friend for 9 years.

She adapted and, like everything in her life, made it satisfying. Because she was such a flexible person and able to adjust to any situation, retirement was just another enjoyable change of pace for Rita to master. In retirement, she found new pleasure in Newark Senior Center. Even in retirement, Rita continued to stay in touch with her old friends and like always, made plenty of new ones.

Rita Escobedo passed away September 10, 2018 at Home in Newark, California. Services were held at Redwood Chapel and St. Anthony's Church. Rita was laid to rest in Holy Cross Catholic Cemetery in Menlo Park.

There was always a certain style and inventiveness to Rita. She was a dynamic, self-expressive person who was forever looking to celebrate the endless possibilities life had to offer. She had a knack for being clever, creative and witty, and for others, was a joy to be around. While she was often fiercely independent, it seemed as if many others looked to Rita Escobedo for inspiration, leadership, wisdom and even courage. Rita was always more than willing to share life’s experiences with her loved ones.