Cora C. Reyes

Cora C. Reyes embodied these words, quoted from Coco Chanel, "I feel that to live is a wonderful thing." No matter where you were you could always see her coming, hair styled to perfection, dressed impeccably and always to the nines, always smiling, laughing and looking forward to whatever was next. She loved the little moments in life as well as the grand events. Whether spending time socializing, being the life of the party or just spending time in front of her canvas painting, she always had a smile on her face and genuine love for what was happening "right now".

It is with great sadness, that I, Jerry J. Reyes, share in announcing the passing of my beloved grandmother, Cora Chavez Lopez Reyes, farmer, artist, caring friend and humanitarian.

Cora was born on the 1st of January, 1926, in Mesilla, New Mexico, to Blas and Emma Lopez Chavez. Cora's family lineage, vaunts a rich heritage of several generations of early pioneer families who settled in the Mesilla Valley. The former family home on the corner of Calle de San Albino and Calle de Parian in Mesilla (directly across the street from the building that now houses the famed La Posta de Mesilla restaurant) is still in existence.

Cora was a wealth of knowledge and wisdom on the history of the Mesilla Valley. She shared many wonderful stories traveling up and down the valley with her consentido, her grandson, Jerry. She talked about her life growing up in Mesilla, the colorful fiestas, the Sunday lunches at her grandmother's home and the many people whom visited. She spoke often of her dear childhood friends, Priscilla Oliver and Rose Tashiro, among many others. Her love for Mesilla and Los Mesilleros remained with her throughout her life.

In 1944, she married Silvestre C. Reyes, son of Jose and Paula Casas Reyes, farmers in the La Mesa area. Together with her husband, they worked hard and farmed their land, acquiring other properties and growing their business. Upon Silvestre's, untimely death in 1983, Cora, along with her beloved son, the late Ruben Richard "Papoose" Reyes and his wife, Olga S. Reyes, continued the family farming business, which then also grew into custom farming and a trucking company.

Cora was a pioneer for women in the agriculture profession in the Mesilla Valley, at a time when many women were in the home, she was very active in the farming profession, serving on the Board of Directors of the Mesquite Co-Op Gin, as well as serving on the Board of SWIG – Southwestern Irrigated Cotton Growers and was a member of the New Mexico Farm Bureau. Cora had a love for the land and spent a great deal of time on the farms. Many of her dear close family and friends from all over remember chile harvesting time at the Reyes Farms, they would enjoy going out into the rows of chile picking to their hearts content.

Cora was a very talented artist and devoted a great deal of her time painting in oil, acrylic and watercolors the many landscape scenes of the Mesilla Valley, especially her beloved Organ Mountains. Several of her paintings are hung in businesses throughout the Mesilla Valley, as well as in the homes of her grandchildren. Cora took great delight in interior decorating, and many remark in awe at the beauty of her home and the wonderful collection of antiques she had. She also enjoyed doing ceramics and being out in her garden ,tending to her roses.

A very outgoing and extremely lively person, Cora had a larger than life personality, she was the life of the party and where she was, you were definitely in for a good time. She never met a stranger, and if you were someone new that she had just met, within a couple of minutes she had you. She loved dancing and spending time living life to the fullest. After the passing of her husband, Cora became even closer to her dear friends, Consuelo "Connie" Lerma, Dorothy Hatch, Genevieve "Gen" Apodaca, Jennie Vallez, Priscilla Apodaca, Lita Vallez, Chata Montes, Petra Martinez, Celia Lujan, Leticia Benavidez, among many others. They have always been a great support to her and they shared many wonderful times together. Cora loved to travel and enjoyed many trips, both national and international, and never said no to an adventure. Many times they would get into Cora's Lincoln, head south to the famed Martino's Restaurant in Juarez, where they spent hours getting serenaded by the mariachis and enjoying good margaritas.

A true lady of grace and class, Cora was always put together from head to toe. Her grandchildren remember that their grandmother never walked out of her bedroom, let alone be seen by anyone, without having her hair done, her make-up perfectly applied, her nails to perfection and dressed impeccably. Many of the farm workers would always comment on how "La Patrona" or "La Senora Reyes" as they called her, would go out to check the farms and make sure everything was in order and how she was always in her high heels even out on the farms, and even though she would sink into the ground, that did not matter to her, she took pride in her appearance. Cora was a founding member of the Dona Ana County LULAC Council 8037, serving on the board of directors and was instrumental in orchestrating the Southern New Mexico Miss LULAC Scholarship Pageant.

Always caring about the state of the community, Cora was very active in politics. A staunch democrat, Cora was an active member of the Democratic Party of Dona Ana County and campaigned for many lawmakers, helping them get elected into office. Cora served the citizens of Dona Ana County as an elections official at election time in the La Mesa Community and served as precinct judge for many years.

Community was very important to Cora and she dedicated a great deal of her time and efforts to helping. In the La Mesa Community, through her farming business, she sponsored the La Mesa Blue Jays girls softball team, thus giving many of the girls of the rural community an outlet and something for them to do during the summer months. She was a member of the Ladies Auxiliary VFW Post 4384 in Anthony, New Mexico. She enjoyed taking golf lesson at the Dos Lagos Golf Course as well as the Anthony Country Club. Through her involvement with LULAC, she served as a mentor to many of the youth throughout the Mesilla Valley. Children always had a special place in her heart and she was a strong supporter of any charitable efforts supporting children especially in education, never forgetting her education being cut short.

Always interested in the history and preservation of the Mesilla Valley, Cora was a member of Las Esperanzas, a nonprofit community organization that preserves, renovates and protects the Mesquite Historic District which is the original townsite of Las Cruces, together with her dear friend and founder of Las Esperanzas, Connie Lerma, they worked at preserving history for future generations. Cora was also active with the former annual Los Mesilleros reunion. In January 2003, Beth Morgan, in conjunction with The Institute of Oral History at the University of Texas at El Paso as well as the Smithsonian National Museum of American History and the Roy Rosenzweig Center for History and News Media interviewed Cora and many of the Mesilla Valley farmers as part of the Bracero History Archives and the Bracero Program in the Mesilla Valley.

Cora and her grandson, Jerry, shared a special bond that even to this day no one has ever been able to break. Cora raised Jerry and they shared many wonderful times together. Even in her illness, anytime she would see her grandson, her eyes lit up the room and she smiled from ear to ear. She was very instrumental in the life of her grandson and always encouraged him to continue forth in his educational and career endeavors. She was very proud of what her grandson accomplished and he was proud to call her his grandma.

Cora was preceded in death by her parents, her loving husband, Silvestre C. Reyes, in January 1983; her cherished son, Ruben Richard "Papoose" Reyes, in July 2005; her sister, Eloisa Sapien, in June 2007; her brother, Blas L. Chavez Jr., in June 2014, her loving and caring padrinos, Eugenio "Pemo" Gamboa, in August 1993 and Amelia Lopez Gamboa in June 2009. She was also preceded in death by many dear and close friends.

In celebrating Cora's life, a Memorial Mass honoring her memory will be celebrated at 10 a.m. Saturday, Aug. 16, 2014, at San Jose Catholic Church, 353 Josephine St., in La Mesa, where the Rev. Guillermo Rivera will be officiating.

In lieu of customary remembrances, memorial contributions may be directed to San Jose Catholic Church or to the

charity of one's choice. Please view Cora's online memorial video tribute at www.MartinFuneralHomeWest.com. where online condolences may be left.

Arrangements under the direction of Martin Funeral Home West, El Paso, TX.