Maria Esther Vilchez

Our beloved mother, Maria Esther Vilchez, will be remembered for her devotion to her husband and two daughters, her family and friends. She was a lifelong learner with a wry sense of humor, and a love of gardening. She had an uncanny ability to find nearly any item in her purse or in the depths of her garage if one should ask her for it, and would somehow know, even before you did, that you needed something.

Maria Esther Vilchez, 80, wife of Miguel Santos Vilchez, and mother to two daughters, Rose Vilchez and Katherine Vilchez, of Riverside, CA, passed away on February 28, 2025, leaving a void her family cannot fill.

Maria was born in Lima, Perú in 1944 to Felipe De La Cruz. She was raised by several aunts, all strong maternal figures, along with three cousins, who were like brothers. She married Miguel Vilchez in June 1968 in Riverside, CA. Together, they raised their two daughters in San Bruno, CA, Riverside, CA and Lima, Perú, until 1977 when they settled permanently in Riverside.

Maria completed her schooling at Colegio Inmaculada Concepción in Lima in 1960. She immigrated to California at the age of 16. Motivated to further her education, she chose nursing. Maria practiced as a Licensed Vocational Nurse (LVN) at Stanford Medical Center, Palo Alto, CA and Riverside General Hospital, Riverside, CA. In 1991, she was in the first cohort of Registered Nurse (RN) graduates of the new 20/20 LVN-RN pathway program sponsored by Riverside General Hospital and Riverside Community College. For a year and a half, she worked part-time as an LVN while taking college courses and nursing practicum. Maria was resourceful and tenacious, audiotaping college lectures for her daughters to transform into color-coded study notes. Together, they learned a range of subjects from American colonial history to microbiology. After nearly 28 years in nursing, Maria retired in 2005. Not one to be still for long, she volunteered at the new Riverside County Regional Medical Center in Moreno Valley, knitting booties and caps for newborns and manning the gift shop. By 2017, she had contributed 4,519 volunteer service hours. Maria was also a member of the Riverside’s Nightingale’s Nurse’s Club, a source of friendship and connection.

Maria’s energy and curiosity made her an enthusiastic travel companion. She took her daughters to Hawaii, Australia, and New Zealand. With her husband, Miguel, she experienced Brazil, Cuba, Puerto Rico, Uruguay, and Venezuela. And with her nephew and niece, Matthew and Madison, she explored Washington, D.C. and its museums; ran through the rain in New York City; and in Spain, Portugal, Italy, and France, she was moved by architecture and art, savored the food, and appreciated the people she encountered.

Maria instilled purpose, curiosity, persistence and the desire for challenge in her daughters. Spending as much time as possible at the Riverside Public Library, she developed their love of reading and learning. Every summer, she registered them in enrichment programs. To keep them busier, she created her own curriculum for reading and math skills, the Palmer Method cursive writing, and manual typewriting skills. Cousins were not exempt from this learning expectation. She encouraged family and friends to pursue education as a pathway to empowerment and betterment.

Maria took classes at the Riverside Adult School; the computer literacy class was most impactful. Her skills allowed her to navigate her iPhone, iPad, and social media. She mastered WhatsApp to talk to family members in Denmark and Perú, added funny captions to photos, and watched YouTube videos to practice for a driving test. She deepened her faith and drew solace from being a member of the Women’s Bible Study at The Grove Community Church in Riverside, and volunteered to provide childcare for parishioners’ infants. Enjoying the camaraderie, she met regularly with the Nightingale’s Nurses Club. Her friendly nature allowed her to connect with people of all ages in different places like the bank, the AT&T store, the hair salon, and the animal rescue thrift store, to name a few. Wherever Maria went, she made a friend. She never doubted that she was doing her neighbors a favor by taking ripe fruit off their trees. Maria spent considerable time making donations to the “doggy store” to help local animal rescue organizations. She loved unusual plants and would share cuttings with anyone who asked.

Maria is survived by Miguel Santos Vilchez, her husband, and daughters, Rose Vilchez and Katherine Vilchez; sister, Dora (Manuel) Baltazar; step-siblings Hilda Adrianzen, Carmen (Jorge) Vera, Felipe (Dora) De la Cruz and Myriam (Jose) Ramirez; aunts Hilda Milla, Irma De La Cruz, Nora Morante; cousins Jose “Pepe” Luis, Nancy, Marco Antonio, Jacqueline,Eliizabeth, Jenny, Ruth, Henry, Rosa, Monica; nieces Jessica, Carolina, Vanessa, Madison, Abigail, Claudia, Sofia, Anali, Mariela, Aurora, and Maria Sagrario; and, nephews Matthew, Kevin, Walther, Alonso, Oscar, and Jose Manuel.

The family kindly requests that instead of sending flowers to consider making a donation of any amount to Foster Army Pet Rescue (https://www.fosterarmy.org/donate/) or Mary S. Roberts Pet Adoption Center (https://petsadoption.org/index.php/support-us/tribute-gifts).