Maria Francisca “PAQUITA” Alvarez Serrano notable farm laborer Mexican American died at age 73 - Winterhaven, CA and Yuma, AZ

Paquita is how her family, friends and co-workers used to call her since she was born, finally succumbed to death after her battle with a very aggressive cancerous tumor in the liver.  Maria Francisca Vendiola, also known as Maria Francisca Alvarez Serrano was a Mexican-American farm migrant laborer who worked for Pete Psquinelli Produce Company for several years. 

Yuma, Arizona – Paquita is how her family, friends and co-workers used to call her since she was born, finally succumbed to death after her battle with a very aggressive cancerous tumor in the liver.  She lived for several years in San Luis, and Somerton, Arizona until the late 1970s when she moved to San Diego, California for a few years and then returned to Winterhaven, Imperial County, California where she lived at McCoy Mobile Home & RV Park.

After becoming a Naturalized United States Citizen, Paquita who lived for sevarl years in Winterhaven, California (Imperial County), always voted whether she was sick or healthy in all U.S. Presidential and Governor's political races.  She was a Democrat.  

Maria Francisca Vendiola, was also known as “PAQUITA” or Maria Francisca Alvarez Serrano.  She was an icon and a role model to numerous single mothers who struggle to make ends meet in Arizona and California; working as a farm field laborer for Pete Pasquinelli Produce Company in the Yuma, Arizona area since the 1960s.  Numerous other former co-workers of Mom Paquita have already passed away.  She took a particular interest in mentoring and helping others who were destitute. 

We all are going to miss her but finally she is resting in peace in a place we believers call it the Kingdom of Heaven.

Maria Francisca “Paquita” Alvarez Serrano (March 30, 1936 – January 22, 2010)

AKA: Maria Francisca “Paquita” Vendiola - Born: 30 March 1936 - Birthplace: La Cofradia De La Loma, Municipio de Navolato, Sinaloa, Mexico - Died: 22 January 2010 at the age of 73 - Location of death: City of Yuma, County of Yuma, Arizona, USA - Cause of death: Cancer

Funeral Services & Mass: Location:  DESERT VALLEY MORTUARY, 15877 South Avenue B, Somerton, Arizona 85350 - Telephone (928) 627- 7600; Fax (928) 627-9668 - Date & Time of Funeral Visitation, Viewing Open Casket, & Catholic Mass: 

JANUARY 26 (Tuesday), 2010, from 1:00 PM – 10:00 PM

Funeral Services:

Desert Valley Mortuary

15877 South Avenue B

Somerton, Arizona 85350   

Remains: Cremation - Desert Lawn Cemetery, Yuma, Arizona

Occupation: Retired Farm Field Agricultural laborer – spent almost all of her life working for PETE PASQUINELLI PRODUCE COMPANY in Yuma County, Arizona. She worked first under the late Mr. Pete Pasquinelli and later under Gary J. Pasquinelli. In the early 1960s Paquita was employed exclusively by Pete Pasquinelli Company.  During the summers she followed the season and worked for the Garcia Brothers & Trucking Company, Vernalis, California. 

Nationality: Naturalized United States Citizens.  Once she became U.S. Citizen, Paquita always went to the polls to cast her vote for all U.S. Presidential and Governor’s elections.

Current address: 3767 W 18^th PL, Yuma, Arizona 85364

Former address: P. O. Box 90 (McCoy Mobile Home Trailer Park) Winterhaven, California

Executive summary: Family Matriarch, Mexican-American Farm Laborer and Single Mother Role Model

Paquita's Parents:

Father: Candelario Alvarez (Deceased)
Mother: Francisca Alvarez Serrano (Deceased)

Paquita’s siblings:

Brothers: Lauro Alvarez (deceased at age 9) La Cofradia de la Loma, Municpio de Navolato, Mexico; Candelario Alvarez (deceased) had 14 children, Ejido Hechicera, Baja California, Mexico; Candido Alvarez (deceased) had 9 children, Somerton, AZ; Andres Alvarez (alive) has 6 children, Yucaipa, CA; Daughter Rosario Jaso (alive) has 12 children, San Luis Rio Colorado, Sonora, Mexico;  children.  Sisters:  Beatriz Barba (alive) has 4 children, Yuma, Arizona; and Eva Luz Crago (alive) has 4 children), Yucaipa, CA, .

Paquita’s Children and Grandchildren:

Son: Salvador Ramon Alvarez Sr. has one son, Salvador Ramon Alvarez Jr.

Salvador Ramon Jr. has two daughters: Alexis Alvarez and Daneah Alvarez.  Salvador Jr. is an Agent with the United States Border Patrol (USBP).  Our Mother’s family members appreciate and thank the USBP for allowing Salvador Jr. to take leave to attend his grandma’s last final moments and funeral services.

Son: Miguel Angel Contreras – Wife: Anik Contreras Muridah

Miguel had two daughters and one son from a previous marriage: Stephanie Krystal Contreras; Nathalie Xchantal Contreras; and Christopher Michael Contreras.  Stephanie has one boy and one girl: Mario Angel Cabrera and Isabel Cabrera.  Wife Anik has one daughter Paulina Wibowo and a son, Paul Peter Tjandra.  Miguel Angel Contreras is a retired special agent with the United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).  Our Mother’s family appreciates and thank to Anik’s, Stephanie’s, Nathalie’s, and Christopher’s employers Mostly Muffins, AEA Federal Credit Union, Taco Bell Restaurants and Papa-San Rice Bowl for being flexible and allow them time off from work to attend our Mother’s funeral services.

Son: Marco Antonio Vendiola Sr. – Wife: Angelica Vendiola Cano.  Marco and Angelica have the following son and daughters: Blanca Ceballos, Karina Sambrano & Marco Antonio Jr.  

Blanca Ceballos and husband Angel Ceballos. Blanca and Angel have the following daughter: Angelica Rodriguez.

Karina Sambrano has one son and one daughter: Romeo Sambrano and Destiny Sambrano

Marco Antonio Vendiola Jr. is married to wife Melissa Vendiola

Narrative:

Too many people, medical doctors, medical organizations public and private organizations became an intricate part of the final years, months, weeks, days and hours of my mother battle with the illness of a full grown cancerous tumor in the liver. To list all of them will take me forever.  First, I want to thank my friend, my role model and someone I consider like a brother, Dr. Roberto Perez Garcia, M.D. who volunteered to become my Mom’s assigned AHCCCS’s family doctor.  I want to thank the outstanding job the medical staff at the Yuma Regional Medical Center provided when Mom was an in-patient from December 10 to December 15, 2009.  I am also very appreciative to AHCCCS-ALTEC of Yuma, Arizona who helped me navigate through the transferring of Mom’s health care insurances from California to Arizona.  The Hospice of Yuma’s field personnel staff did an outstanding job in taking care of Mom.  As to the Clinic Director of Hospice of Yuma, her name was referred to the appropriate section of AHCCCS, since she didn’t care whether I made the referral or not.  It is incredible how one rotten apple can spoil the entire basket.

Mother Paquita was a single mother of three boys who in 1968 immigrated her us all three into the United States. 

I remember the American consular officer from the Hermosillo, Sonora, Mexico’s Consulate office after giving my two brothers and I the Immigrant Visas of Lawful Permanent Resident Aliens (LPRA) and telling us that we were given the visas to work in the farm fields.  I was 12 years old. My older brother Salvador was 14 and my younger brother Marco Antonio was 6 years old.

Soon I learned why Mom Paquita used to get up early at 3:00 am or 4:00 am go to work as a migrant farm agricultural worker.  We lived in San Luis, AZ for a year or two and later moved to Somerton, Arizona where we lived together until May 1977. 

From 1968 until 1974 I became a full grown up man working for Pete Pasquinelli Produce Company almost all year around and then in the summers we used to make yearly trips to Patterson, California Mom Paquita and I to work for the Garcia Brothers & Trucking.  In Yuma and Dom Valleys when we worked for Pete Pasquinelli, we tended the crops and I worked alongside full grown men in the harvesting and processing lettuces in the winter and picking-up melons by “contract” – meaning we got pay for the amount of lettuces or cantaloupe melons our individual crews made.

Mom Paquita’s close friends when we worked for Pete Pasquinelli were Amado & Maria Delgado, Maria’s sister Eva Peinado & Adalberto Peinado and their immediate family members, to name just a few.  Overall my experience working for Pete Pasquinelli who in the early 1970s was taken over by Pete Pasquinelli’s son, Gary P. Pasquinelli was very positive.  I remember when at age 12 or 13, when tending the crops of melon or lettuce we worked and got paid by the hour at $1.25.  When I was still very young, it took me a few weeks to finish my assigned field labor on my own.  Thanks to our supervisor or “mayordomo” Chalio (I believe his first name was Fernando) he was a good and considerate boss.  He allowed Mom and her friends gave me a hand to finish up my share.

During my teen years, I met the Ortiz family of Somerton, Arizona.  The late Juan Jose Ortiz, the oldest of his two other brothers, became my friend, mentor, and drinking buddy.  Our friendship, just like Amado & Maria Delgado’s remained with me until the present times. 

At the age of 15, I started working alone.  Mom became disabled to work and soon I was maintaining and supporting a household.  Thanks to the moral support and a little convincing by my friend Dr. Roberto Perez Garcia, in 1974, I applied for admission at Arizona Western College and on May 1977 I graduated with an Associate degree in law enforcement.  Mom gave me two hundred dollars, a gold ring and a paid ticket to East Lansing, Michigan to continue my law enforcement studies.

Last year an old roommate and classmate of mine, Juan Bustos who currently is a supervisor at the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) contacted me to ask me about the Theological graduate studies I took.  His phone call and Email came to me at the right moment.  Since Mom was already diagnosed with her terminal illness, I asked Juan if his Mom was still alive.  He answered in the negative.  I then asked him to describe me the pain and suffering we go through as we watch our Mom’s lives fading slowly away.  Juan and I exchanged Emails and phone calls always talking like two brothers united by the same faith.  Juan was of tremendous moral support.  I know that after he retires, he will be able to devote 100% of his time helping others.  If Juan is reading this story, thank you Juan for making a difference in my life!

On January 22, 2010, after Mom died after 5:00 pm, I sent Juan a short Email and gave the news that Mom finally was resting in peace with our Lord Christ Jesus.  Juan then sent me the following Email - Juan gave me permission to post it, after I told him that I wanted to share such a beautiful message he wrote and wanted to share with you.  Perhaps, his message can help others who are going through the loss of a beloved one and are grieving their deaths that in reality it is a momentary death because as true Christians we believe that God the Father through his Son our Lord Jesus Christ has promised eternal life.  As such, our departed beloved ones receive eternal lives.  I present to you Juan’s message:

January 23, 2010

 “Mi Hermano Miguel,

I can't tell you how I feel. Words cannot give justice to the loss of your wonderful Mother. I grieve with you. We must first thank our almighty Father for the extra time he granted us with her. He granted us the time because she raised a good son and because you asked. He is the word!  You should be proud of yourself. You have done wonders that she was proud of. In 1983, I was proud of you and your accomplishments. During our separation you have compounded the reasons for being proud. Your Mother witnessed your accomplishments. Remember, David said, "I will see the goodness of God, in the land of the living..." God is good! 

My brother, grieving is a natural process. Jacob grieved Joseph by tearing his cloths apart. King David expressed his grief in words, "O my son Absalom, my son, my son..." David wept for Saul. Billy Graham wrote, "Let grief do its work. Tramp every inch of the sorrowful way. Drink every drop of the bitter cup. Draw from the memory and hope all that they can offer (W. Graham Scroggie)..."  You will hear people say, I am sorry (over and over) it is because they don't know what to say. Just accept their sincere comfort.  Billy Graham makes an important point. "As we have been comforted, we will know how to comfort." He also quotes, Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comforts in our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves have received from God." (2 Corinthians I: 3 - 4)... love as brothers, be compassionate and humble (I Peter 3:8). So grieve freely my Brother, and I will be there with you.

However the good news is "...to be absent from the body is to be one with the Lord."  (2 Corinthians 5:8). And, using our Lord's own word, "...we who are still alive, who are left till the coming of the Lord, will certainly not precede those who have fallen asleep. For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever." (1 Thess. 4:14-17).  So we get to look forward to seeing our loved ones again.

As for the service, celebrate the reunion of the Lord and your Mom. You must celebrate because, as you told me, she heard the "word and believed him."  Therefore, she has eternal life. She has crossed from death to life (John 5:24). Tell the story about Martha when her brother Lazarus died. Jesus said, "I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me will live, even though he dies; and whoever lives and believes in me will never die (John II: 25). Use your mother as an example to serve Him.

My brother, in the following days, I will pray continuously for you and your mother (including your brothers). I want you to freely grieve your mother's departure, but also celebrate her graduation. She now has a new body and is looking face to face at our Lord.

God bless you my brother.

 Juan”

South San Francisco, California