[Congressional Record Volume 164, Number 124 (Tuesday, July 24, 2018)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1057]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




   HONORING THE LIFE AND LEGACY OF FRANCISCO (FRANK) ``PANCHO'' RIOS

                                 ______
                                 

                       HON. LUCILLE ROYBAL-ALLARD

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                         Tuesday, July 24, 2018

  Ms. ROYBAL-ALLARD. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor the life and 
legacy of Francisco (Frank) ``Pancho'' Rios, an Angeleno, a veteran, an 
immigrant, and a man who lived a rich life full of love and service. 
With his passing on the evening of July 17, 2018, his loss is being 
mourned by family, friends, and others who knew him.
  Francisco Rios was born in 1930 in the small town of Santa Barbara, 
Chihuahua, Mexico, and he resided in Mexico until 1952 when he left to 
attain his piece of the American Dream. He married his wife Paula Vega 
in 1954, and together they settled in Fresno, California, before 
ultimately making their home in Los Angeles.
  Francisco decided to serve his adopted home, enlisting in the U.S. 
Army, where he served on active duty from 1955 to 1957, and received an 
honorable discharge on June 30, 1963. For three decades, he also 
dedicated himself to serving Los Angeles County residents, working to 
maintain roadways for the Department of Public Works.
  Known affectionately as ``Nino'' and Uncle Frank, Francisco became an 
avid traveler, venturing to Africa, the Middle East, Western Europe, 
and his favorite destination, Las Vegas. He fondly recounted many of 
his travels, including his spiritual pilgrimage to the Holy Land, and 
to Vatican City. An Angeleno through and through, he was everyone's 
favorite tour guide of Los Angeles and its surrounding areas, regularly 
exposing out-of-town family visitors to the diversity of the region's 
sights and attractions.
  While Francisco and his wife Paula did not have children together, 
they were an affectionate presence in the lives of their nieces and 
nephews, to whom they showed love, wisdom, kindness, and unwavering and 
unconditional support. The latest of these was Kaila Vega, daughter of 
Amador Vega.
  Mr. Speaker, I ask my colleagues to join me in sending heartfelt 
condolences to the family of Francisco Rios. He leaves behind a rich 
legacy of love, patience, warmth, affection, strength, and wisdom that 
will be deeply missed by his loved ones. He is preceded in death by his 
parents Francisco and Soledad and his wife Paula, and he is survived by 
siblings, many nieces and nephews, and godchildren, who will deeply 
miss and cherish the memory of their ``Nino'' and Uncle Frank.

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