Angela Angie Pena Alvillar

Angela Alvillar, 87, beloved mother, grandmother, great-grandmother and wife of Ysidro Alvillar, went to join the Lord, as well as her husband of 66 years who preceded her in death, on Friday, February 25, 2011. She was born June 28, 1923 in Mesilla Park, New Mexico, lived in Los Angeles, CA, and moved to Morenci, Arizona in 1948. She lived in Phoenix for the past 30 years after her husband retired from Phelps Dodge in 1981. Angela was the mother of Sarah Alvillar, Lake Forest, CA, Erminda Hicks, Phoenix, AZ, and Dolores Klokinis, Glendale, AZ, and step-mother of Isadore "Scott" Alvillar, Las Vegas, NV. She was the loving grandmother of Angela Ortiz, Robert Ortiz, Jr., Sabrina Carr, Lora Hicks, Christina Taylor, Michelle Turner, Tammy Diaz and Jennifer Alvillar (deceased). She leaves 11 great-grandchildren: Isabella Ortiz, Kashmere, Roisin, and Penelope Carr, Jazmine Klokinis, Jacob, Brandon, and Mason Turner, Jeremy Alvillar, Armando Diaz, Jr., and Eva Ann Diaz. Angela left a wonderful legacy of work as a public servant, having been the Director of the Dislocated Worker Program at the Maricopa Community College Skills Center, and Director of Continuing Education of Greenlee County. She was a talented grant writer who obtained millions of dollars in federal funding with the support of Senator John McCain to assist dislocated workers to transition from lay-off and job loss to living wage earners with new skills and training. Angela was a universal teacher and those who knew her appreciated that she wanted to make people's lives better by finding ways to help them through the educational system. She was a mentor to many young people and she believed that getting a formal education was a necessity; not a luxury. Angela was a leader in the LULAC organization and was honored as their Woman of the Year in 1979. She was a vocal force in the Phelps Dodge Miner's Strike in 1983. As an activist, she met and invited Cesar Chavez to speak with the union workers in support of their strike action. In 1994, Angela received an appointment as a member of the Commission on Judicial Performance Review in the Supreme Court of the State of Arizona. She also authored a book of short stories and poetry, "Ayer, Hoy, Despues?" After raising her family, Angela went on to earn a Bachelor of Science in Education and a Master's Degree at the University of Arizona in Vocational Rehabilitation and graduated with highest distinction. She had a a significant influence in every educational endeavor she entered. She will be greatly missed, but her legacy as a stalwart educational advocate will live on forever in the lives of the people she touched. A Rosary Service will be held Thursday, March 3rd at 7:00 p.m. at A.L. Moore Grimshaw Mortuary, 710 W. Bethany Home Rd., Phoenix, AZ 85013. The Funeral Mass will be held on Friday, March 4th at 1:30 p.m. at St. Francis Xavier Church, 4715 N. Central Ave., Phoenix, AZ 85012. Celebration of life to follow the funeral mass.