Tony Franco Rivera

Tony Franco Rivera, 86 a lifelong resident of Riverside, CA. died in his Casa Blanca home on September 11, 2016 surrounded by his loved ones. He is survived by his 3 Brothers Salvador “Chavo”, Santos, Ygnacio “Junie”, 1 sister Margaret, 4 sons Anthony (Christine), Michael (Elsie), Jaime (Bertha), Ronnie (Irene); 3 daughters Lidia (Douglas), Phyllis (Santos) and Tamie, 20 grandchildren, 22 Great Grandchildren and 1 G.Great- Grandchild. He is preceded in death by his wife Frances, Grandsons Jaime Jr. and Ricky, 1 brother Trinidad, 2 sisters Lucy and Eleanor, and his parents Ygnacio and Adelaida Rivera.

Tony was born on February 7, 1930 and was the fifth child of eight. He was married to his wife Frances for 54 years. He served in The United States army for 2 years, where he was stationed for a portion of his time in Okinawa.

Tony worked for the Riverside School District for over 30 years as a carpenter. He joined his wife in retirement in 1993. But his working days did not stop there. He was known among his family as the man to call when anyone’s home needed repairs.

Tony was a man of all trades. Not only was he able to fix what was broken, he knew his way around the kitchen. He would make large pots of menudo, and every time during Christmas he would gather with his siblings and their spouses to make hundreds of tamales, a tradition that was started by his mother. If he wasn’t holding a hammer or in the kitchen you could find him behind his camera snapping every memory possible.

Tony was a very family oriented man. He was a second father to many, He will be missed by all.