Anna Maria Rios

“I am a child of God,” she once wrote to describe herself, “Catholic, prayerful, American, Mexican, daughter, sister, godmother, friend, principal, mentor, compassionate, caring, forgiving, hopeful.”

Her greatest legacy, however, was her calling as a teacher in the Los Angeles and San Bernardino archdioceses, committed to the spiritual education of children.

“Any teacher can provide instruction in math, science and reading,” she would say, “but my job as a Catholic school teacher is to help my students get to heaven.”

Anna-Maria credited her devotion to her parents, Maria and Manuel Rios, who oversaw her baptism at St. Joseph Catholic Church in Los Angeles in 1960. The young family was living at the time in Compton and moved to the Corona-Norco area in 1965 soon after their second daughter, Dolores Cecilia Rios, was born.

The family joined St. Mel’s Catholic Church in Norco, and Anna-Maria was enrolled at the parish’s school, where at an early age, she learned compassion, patience and the importance of service in God’s name. As a young girl, she worked beside her mother in the Altar Society, dusting pews in the church and preparing food for festivals with the charity organization, Guadalupanas.

Her mother also instilled in Anna-Maria a lifelong loyalty to USC, a devotion that her cousins who favored the other university across town never understood. The friendly inter-family rivalry led one day to a playful kidnapping of their cousin’s Bruin mascot, a small stuffed bear, an act that temporarily tested the meaning of forgiveness.

Anna-Maria’s love of sports came from her own athletic talent. At Notre Dame High School, she was a pitcher on the girls’ softball team. A quick star, she established a California Interscholastic Federation’s record for pitching three consecutive shutouts. Later she joined the Norco municipal softball league coached by her father.

Manuel was a steady presence in Anna-Maria’s life, and in later years, the two of them would make an annual pilgrimage to Laughlin, Nevada, where they would celebrate her birthday and try their luck at the Blackjack tables.

After her high school graduation in 1978, she attended Chaffey College in Rancho Cucamonga where she made the Dean’s list and received her Associates of Arts degree. She continued on to Cal State Fullerton for a year and a half.

Anna-Maria’s life had challenges, including the loss of her mother in 1979 who unexpectedly passed away in the hospital. Faith helped Anna-Maria navigate her grief.

In her 20s, she lived in Norco and Riverside and worked as a building supply store salesperson. But her ambitions were more entrepreneurial. She wanted to become a store manager but soon realized that back then, it wasn’t a position that women could aspire toward. So in 1986, she changed jobs, started selling building tools and began her own lawn service business, applying the skills that she had learned from her father.

As much as her life changed, she also knew that God was guiding her, and through prayer and meditation, she heard him calling her to service.

After teaching physical education and serving as a youth minister, she realized that working with children was her greatest joy. She attended a two-year program for youth ministry organized by the San Bernardino diocese. In 1994, she went to a Young Adult Congress and was inspired by a talk by its renown director Sr. Edith Prendergast, who helped her chart a deeper journey toward God.

One year later, she entered the now-closed Sisters of St. Benedict monastery in Grand Terrace, where she served for eight years. During that time, she also taught second grade at St. Edward School and believing that her further calling was to promote the mission of a Catholic education through school leadership she eventually left the order.

In 2003, she began an enduring relationship with the community of students, teachers, staff and families at St. Mary School in Palmdale. She taught several grades, eventually accepting leadership roles and becoming a religion coordinator.

A lifelong learner herself, she earned her bachelor’s degree in liberal arts from the University of Redlands and her master’s degree in Catholic School leadership at the University of San Francisco. She was also a master catechist, and in summer of 2013, she traveled to Bolivia to study Spanish.

Anna-Maria loved to travel and would often share stories about her trips to the Canadian Rockies and the Grand Canyon. She also enjoyed local getaways. Aliso Beach in Laguna was a favorite, where she would take a chair, a blanket and her journal for a morning meditation.

Anna-Maria was especially close to her sister Dolores – known to family and friends as Lolly – and the two would often get together for dinner and a movie. They favored comedies and musicals, and she enjoyed playing the soundtrack of “The Sound of Music” at home, especially when she was baking and the kitchen (not the hills) could come alive with her voice.

In 2010, Anna-Maria left St. Mary’s to become vice principal at St. Columbkille School in south Los Angeles and was soon named principal, fulfilling her calling to be a mentor for new teachers as well as a school leader who worked easily with staff, students, and their families.

As gifted as she was tackling challenging administrative issues, Anna-Maria also took pleasure in the “hand-on, eyes-on, hearts-on” experience of education.

“It's delightful and encouraging,” she once wrote to students and staff, “to watch you studying in groups, focusing on teacher instruction, organizing projects, reading individually, researching on laptops/chrome books, praying bowed heads, climbing the Kaboom, running around at sports events, and reaching out in caring concern when another is sad, injured or in pain.”

After five years, Anna-Maria once again redirected her life and returned to St. Mary School. As committed as she was to St. Columbkille School and sustained by its community, which she called “united, loving and filled with the love and guidance of the Holy Spirit,” she wanted to be closer to home.

Returning as St. Mary’s principal, Anna-Maria was loved by her students, their families, teachers and staff. She committed herself to improving school facilities and recently won a grant from the Shea Family Foundation.

Starting this summer, the campus will be modernized with new flooring, air conditioning and heating, electrical systems, shade for outdoor eating areas and playground equipment and other upgrades.

In a recent letter to the St. Mary community, incoming principal Nennette Barriga paid tribute to Anna-Maria. “Her legacy of compassion, dedication, and unwavering commitment to our school community will forever be treasured and honored. In her memory, let us continue to embody the values she instilled in us and strive to uphold her vision for our school.”

Anna-Maria once reflected on the meaning of happiness as expressed by Pope Francis:

Let everyone be themselves. Give yourself tirelessly to others. Walk softly. Be available to your kids and family. Spend Sundays as a day of rest, or with family. Work toward empowering young people. Care for the environment. Respect others' opinions. Actively strive for peace.

Anna-Maria understood the meaning of Christ’s life and applied the lessons of the Catholic Church to her own. By generously giving to the lives of so many others, she believed and succeeded in making the world a better place.

She is survived by her sister, Lolly, and was predeceased by her parents, Maria and Manuel Rios.