She is survived by two sisters, Sally Apodaca and Olivia Garcia, as well as two brothers, Pete and Henry Salazar.
Carmen is survived by her seven children: Lydia Abril (Fabian Medina), Linda (Celestino “Boy”) Rios, Sylvia Menchaca, Josie (John) Ippolito, Diane (Mark) Hamel, Richard (Priscilla) Abril, and Leticia (Art) Garay. She has 25 grandchildren 39 great-grandchildren, 1 great-great grandchild and two grandchildren who will greet her in heaven.
Carmen grew up in central Phoenix, attending Grace Court School. She met her husband, Ricardo Abril, and married on March 31, 1950. In 1962, Richard and Carmen founded La Canasta Mexican Foods, a Mexican food restaurant and made tortillas for the surrounding community of 7th Avenue and Grant and supplied local restaurants with tortillas. As the restaurant industry grew, so did the demand for tortillas. Richard Abril unexpectedly passed in 1974, and Carmen was left to raise seven children and continue to run the business on her own. Her business savvy and acumen continued to grow. With family support in each business segment, she sought future opportunities within both the food service and tortilla industry, thus growing both.
In 1982, Carmen and her family took a leap of faith opening La Canasta Mexican Food Products Inc., separating the tortilla factory from the restaurant. They then began supplying tortilla chips and corn and flour tortillas to restaurants, schools, and grocery stores.
My Nana’s “Best Tasting” tortilla products made by La Canasta Mexican Food Products are a household name in Arizona.
The La Canasta Family-Owned Restaurants also continue to thrive with six locations: The Original La Canasta (Phx), La Canasta Burrito Shop (Phx), La Canasta Capitolio (Phx), Lydia’s La Canasta (Phx & Wickenburg), and Sylvia’s Off the Grill (North Phx).
Her commitment to the community includes a monthly standing order of 3,000 dozen Fresh tortillas to St Mary’s Foodbank since 2004, and providing In-Kind support to Alzheimer’s Association and the Arizona Hemophilia Association, all of which will continue.
She was the National Small Business Woman of the Year in 1990 and Arizona Business Woman of the year in 1987 and was given the proud honor to host President William Clinton and other dignitaries in their “New Market Initiatives” roundtable at La Canasta Mexican Food Products Inc. in 1993.
In 1990, Carmen Abril was remarried to Pete Lopez and they were married for over 20 years before he passed on December 13, 2012.
Carmen was an amazing mother, grandmother, great-grandmother, and entrepreneur that lived her life based on faith, family, integrity, honesty, perseverance, commitment, and business acumen. She was a leader and mentor to many who knew her.
She was small in stature, yet big in dreams and expectations and was a “No Nonsense” type of person.
Carmen Abril Lopez had an undying love for all her seven children equally. She will be greatly missed by all who knew her.
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