Amrita A. Burgos

Everyone’s life is the sum total of all of the people they have met, the things they have done, the places they have gone. Amrita Augustina Burgos was no exception. She was a loved one, a friend, and someone special. To family and friends who knew her best, Rita will be remembered as a very exceptional person. She was very outgoing and her smile lit up a room, people loved to be around her because she was so happy.

Rita’s life journey began on May 6, 1946. She first greeted the world in Belize City Hospital, British Honduras. Her parents' names were Luis and Sarita Cano. Rita was very proud of her accomplished father and her nurturing mother. She grew up in Cinderella Town, a newly developed area, North of Belize City, British Honduras. It allowed her to learn and grow and create all kinds of memories. She enjoyed spending summers visiting her friends in Corozal where she would swim all day in the ocean.

A lot of what shaped Rita’s life was how she was raised. She was raised with eight siblings. Rita had five younger sisters. Her sisters are Judy, Yolanda, Mirna, Elisa and she was predeceased by Diana. Her three younger brothers are Omar, Mario and Bobby. Being the eldest, Rita, happily helped with all her siblings. She was concerned and protective of her sisters and brothers for her entire life. Rita was usually involved in all sorts of activities. She and her siblings shared many life experiences over the years. Her paternal grandparents were Augustina Cano and Crispin Taylor. Her maternal grandparents were Robateau and Lopez. Rita was close to other relatives as well; Rita particularly enjoyed spending time with Aunt Nita and her eldest daughter at their farm.

As a young girl, Rita had a number of interests. She grew up in a house located at #9 Guadalupe Street, which she and her family helped to build. Rita was an active child who enjoyed a number of different activities, especially swimming. She was also active in various groups she was a part of Rosary Sodality Group and found joy in volunteering for church functions. A number of things caught her interest, such as Swimming, gardening, beauty culture, dancing, entertaining, reading and biology. When it came to playtime, Rita enjoyed playing hopscotch, jacks, checkers and jumping rope.

In school, Rita learned many things and made many friends. She attended Holy Redeemer School and Saint Joseph School. Rita managed to accomplish many things as a child, both in and out of the classroom. Rita was the winner of a Beauty Pageant and often received academic awards. However, to Rita, the most fun to be had was simply playing and spending time with her friends. In all, Rita grew up surrounded by family and friends who cared about her very much.

In 1964 Rita graduated from Palotti High School. Rita was taught by many Irish nuns. Her courses included home economics where she mastered sewing, cooking and home making. She loved her academic classes. Rita tried to be involved in a number of different activities, during these years.

The teen years weren’t only about school, though. While in high school, Rita attended a Halloween party and loved dressing as a colorful gypsy and was accompanied by her boyfriend, Orlando who was dressed as a handsome Batman.

Rita also enjoyed other social aspects of her high school years. Rita and Orlando went to prom together in high school. She wore a short pink dress and a beehive hairdo. Her beauty was unmatched.

Rita learned a lot about responsibility back then. Rita enjoyed Church events and socializing with friends. As a teen, Rita still enjoyed her summers in Corozal at her Aunt Nita's farm.

After high school, Rita attended beauty culture school. Like in high school, beauty school was more than just going to classes and learning. Education went beyond the classroom.

Falling in love is a huge milestone for any person. Just knowing that you have met that special someone is a magical feeling. Rita experienced that when she married to Orlando Eduardo Burgos. Rita and Orlando met at a girl's birthday party when she was 17. Shortly after they met, they got engaged.

Rita exchanged wedding vows with her husband Landy. On Rita and Orlando were married at Holy Redeemer Catholic Church on Sunday, November 15, 1964. The service was traditional and Spanish style, intimate, including mostly family. Officiating for the marriage ceremony was a young priest, Father Charleville. Jaime and Janice Agilar were the honor attendants for Rita and Orlando. The reception, like the service was very intimate and held at the groom's home, #1 Keyhold Alley. It was a gathering of family, and their cake was a traditional black fruit cake.

The couple enjoyed their honeymoon in Merida, Yucatan.

Empathic and loyal, Rita was committed to making her new family happy. She focused on everyone's comfort or how to balance the needs of those around her. It is true that during those early years the couple lived modestly, but they were happy nonetheless. The newlyweds lived in a large two-bedroom two-story house at #1 Keyhole Alley. The first house Rita and Orlando purchased was a newly built beige concrete, two-story house with six bedrooms, two bathrooms, and two kitchens on 36 St. Thomas Street, King's Park, Belize City, C. A.

Some of their dear friends included Jaime and Janice Agilar, Melhem Zaiden, Wilfredo Guererro, and Juan Coye. They also had two mixed-breed dogs, respectively named Blackie and Brownie for the dogs' color.

Rita worked hard to be a good mother to her children and she did her best to fulfill their needs. Rita was blessed with five children, Orlando Ricardo, Elsner Francisco, Sergio Antonio, Elia Maricela, and Dilcia Imelda. She worked hard toward raising her children in a positive and nurturing environment. Theirs was a large, spacious home, perfectly suited for young children to grow in. Rita's children all held many academic and science fair awards, the two elder sons won wrestling awards.

Rita enjoyed traveling and time away on vacations, especially road trips to Florida. They visited places such as Niagara Falls, Mexico, Belize, and Hawaii.

Rita’s children also enjoyed the company of the family pets. When the children were young, they had a German Shepherd named Nero and an orange tabby cat named Kitty. Both of the pets loved the outdoors.

Later on, Rita was blessed with the gift of five grandchildren, Orlando Roberto Chapa, Ria Marie Burgos, Ian Zenfrey Burgos, Alec Burgos, and Anna Cecilia Burgos.

Rita enjoyed what she did for a living. Showing a strong work ethic, Rita worked diligently and did her best to succeed in each of her jobs. While she worked several jobs over her life, Rita’s primary occupation was director and office manager for a nonprofit organization once her family moved to the United States. Rita's first full time job was as a teacher in Belize while her children were very young.

Though Rita didn’t work for accolades, she was recognized for a job well done. Rita helped an entire underserved and underprivileged community in Lake County, Illinois.

Rita always sought to be a team player, doing what was necessary in order to get the job done. On the job, she was very friendly and made the following lifetime friends through her work, Dr. Ed Tobias, Dr. Sharon Malinowski, Denise Samaripa, Selma Chapa, Drs. Tim and Tom Straka, Dr. Donald Gundlach, Dr. Corky Sherwood, Jill Tewes, Maryanne Sherwood, and Veronica Palomo. Rita enjoyed her coworkers and even vacationed with some of her girlfriends in Cancun, Mexico, where they met her sister Judy Vasquez.

Rita enjoyed her leisure time by taking part in a number of different activities, as an adult, Rita enjoyed sewing, making jewelry, writing, gardening, painting, dancing, and decorating her home. She was always willing to share her interests with others.

Like all people, Rita had her favorite things in life. Rita had a sweet tooth, always opting for dessert. She particularly enjoyed making pineapple upside down cake and at Christmastime a black fruitcake for the family. She loved summertime because she could enjoy her garden. She also loved wearing jewelry, doing her nails, and wearing makeup. Her family and friends were often sent loving cards and letters for no reason at all. She enjoyed reading all about decorating and homemaking magazines.

When it came to entertainment, Rita enjoyed a number of different things. In fact, Rita frequented Home and Garden Television in addition to evening dramas, situation comedies, and later Oprah and Dr. Oz. Her favorite movies were all love stories such as Dr. Zhivago and Gone With The Wind. Rita enjoyed all music, but especially upbeat music to which she could dance. She also enjoyed good food and drink, such as Rita loved soda pop and seafood. She always preferred traditional Belizean food, such as rice and beans, conch soup and fritters, stewed chicken, and potato salad.

A person’s faith says a great deal about them. Some people are raised with strong beliefs while others garner them throughout their life. Rita’s faith was important to her. Rita was a traditional Roman Catholic. She always kept her loved ones in her prayers, and felt as though her prayers and candles lit their paths when needed. Rita was a woman who relied on her instinct, but was very trusting and had a innocent faith in people and in good. She was the caring voice, the affection and always the support of those around her needed.

When Rita’s retirement finally arrived in 1993, she was well-prepared. She retired very young, at 47. Early retirement allowed her to enjoy many more years with her family than she overwise would have able to do. Rita retired to Boca Raton, Florida and lived in a community named Solimar, later Villa Nova. The home in Boca Raton was a three bedroom, two bath stucco home with a pool, spa, tropical garden. Inside the home, there was an atrium where Rita kept many of her plants and a fountain.

Even in retirement, Rita continued to stay in touch with her old friends while making new ones. New friends included her neighbors Ron and Lorna (Peachie) Carr when they moved in 2004. Rita and Orlando often had dinner with Ron and Peach.

Rita Burgos left us on May 13, 2011. She passed away at Hospice of Palm Beach County at Delray Medical Center, Room 2034. She was 65 years old and one week. The cause of death was metastatic pancreatic cancer, liver failure. Rita was preceded in death by her sister Diana. Rita is survived by her husband and children. Services were handled by Babione Funeral Home, a Dignity Memorial Provider in Boca Raton, Florida. Rita was laid to rest at Forest Lawn Memorial Gardens in Pompano Beach, Florida.

So this is Rita’s life, the sum of the woman that she became. Simply stated, Rita was a good and kind person, an individual who will for all time be remembered by her family and friends as being caring and giving, someone who was a vital part of their lives. Rita leaves behind her a legacy of lifelong friendships and many cherished memories. Everyone whose life Amrita Augustina Burgos touched will always remember her with a smile.