Maria Dolores Rivas

Maria Dolores Hernandez-Rivas was called home on December 25, 2023 at the age of 97. She will be sorely missed by her surviving 4 sons and 6 daughters, 28 grandchildren, 55 great grandchildren and 12 great great grandchildren.

Maria taught her children and grandchildren how to ride bikes, how to cook and how to enjoy living. Her door was always open for her children and for their many friends. Maria never turned down an invitation for a family gathering, her children and then her grandchildren were her pride and joy. She instilled in them all to be strong, independent and to love and fight for each other.

Maria will always be known for her weekly attendance at Holy Name Church, her delicious cooking, which was self taught and for her love of doublemint gum. She enjoyed baking, sewing, crocheting and shopping. It was her love for being outdoors, basking in the sun, and the beauty that is life that made her venture outside any day of the year. Maria loved playing in the snow and taking in the sunshine in the park. Her motto was better than the postman's: neither snow, nor rain, nor heat, nor gloom of night could keep her indoors. She loved to go to the movies, her favorite genres were Karate movies with Bruce Lee and scary movies. Maria loved exercise and staying physically fit. She loved watching wrestling and the

American Gladiators on TV. She would often reenact the fight scenes with her grandchildren. She was not your typical grandmother.

Maria encouraged us all to enjoy music, enjoy family and enjoy life. She was always dressed in something colorful, usually red with her special flair and style which included a beret, a hat or a flower in her hair. Her long beautiful hair and radiant smile always lit up a room. She may no longer be here with us on this Earth but each of us have a part of her: her strength, her courage and her sense of humor, her style and her flair for living. Jeremiah 29:11 “I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.

A memorial service for Maria will be held Saturday, January 6, 2024 from 4:00 PM to 8:00 PM at Forest Park Funeral Home, 114-03 Queens Blvd, Forest Hills, NY 11375.