Elvira Ferriño Riddle died peacefully in her home on August 15, 2020 with her daughter, Rosa Elvira, and her loyal caregiver Adelaida at her bedside. At age 94, Elvira died of natural causes after living a full and loving life. As a proper eulogy in the company of all those who loved her is not an option during this pandemic, we her five children opted to share mamá’s story.
Elvira was the second of six children born to Atilio Miguel Ferriño and Dora Ramos Morales in the town of Cuatro Ciénegas de Carranza, Coahuila, Mexico. Her father managed the Bodegas Ferriño, a winery founded by his father Don Miguel Ferriño, an Italian immigrant and apothecarist. As young girls, mamá, her sisters, and cousins remembered seeing young Italian immigrant men seeking out their grandfather in hopes of securing employment. Mamá’s father was also the miller for the region and a horticulturist who tended to acres of pecan trees, fig trees, grape vines, and rose bushes. She remembers the grain farmers coming to ‘el Molino’ and picnic on the grounds of her parent’s home, named ‘La Maquina’ as they waited for their grain to be milled. Each April, the figs and rose petals were gathered and laid out to be dried and sold. There was always a bushel of rose petals set aside for ‘spring cleaning’. The furniture and rugs would be pushed aside for petals to be sprinkled along the concrete floors and every crevice of the main house, the ‘Molino’, and even the outside patio. Their scent could be detected for at least half a mile as you approached ‘la Maquina’…enveloping you with their intense aroma.
We got to experience this aromatic spring cleaning one time…it was magical! My mother would take the five of us every summer to spend at least two months in Cuatro Ciénegas and to visit family in the surrounding area. Another vivid memory is sitting outside in rocking chairs on starry summer nights listening to my mother and aunts harmonizing beautiful boleros and ‘canciónes románticas’ by the light of kerosene lamps. These trips continued until we started working summer jobs. It was important to mamá that we meet her large family (her father was one of eleven and her mother one of five) and the place which held such wonderful memories for her. It was also paramount to both my parents that we remain fluent in Spanish, our first language. We all remember how mamá would turn a deaf ear if we spoke to her in English responding with ‘díganlo en español’!
The year after mamá finished sixth grade, the highest grade offered in her hometown; she and her older sister Dora enrolled in a Catholic boarding school in Saltillo, the state capital. There she studied ‘secundaria’ (junior high) and graduated in ‘comercio’ (business). Once their studies were finished both sisters went back to Cuatro Ciénegas. In 1942, at the age of sixteen, my mother was elected queen of her hometown summer festival and crowned Elvira I, Reina de La Feria de la Uva. It was the first time she ever wore heels and it was quite a balancing act to walk down the runway to her throne in the Plaza de Toros.
Mamá remained in Ciénegas and worked as a secretary of a large ‘bodega’. She was quite stunning and never lacked suitors. In stark disapproval of one particular suitor my grandparents took a drastic move and sent her as far away as possible…in this case Rochester, New York to stay with an older cousin. My grandfather and uncle took mamá to San Antonio and boarded her on a train bound to upstate New York. Mamá stayed in Rochester for almost a year, experiencing the bitter cold and wonderful snow and learning about modern kitchen and home appliances. At first, her cousin’s wife thought mamá was quite spoiled as she had no idea how to use a modern washing machine, clothes dryer, vacuum cleaner, or blender. Once mamá got over her fear of all things electrical however, she able to do her part of the household chores.
In 1951, mamá accompanied her father to Eduardo and Severita Riddle’s 50th wedding anniversary in Eagle Pass. Severita began matchmaking as soon as she laid eyes on mamá and made sure to introduce her to Octavio Rodolfo, her son who at age 41 was a confirmed bachelor. It seems my grandmother worked quickly because on July 29, 1952, Elvira Ferriño and Octavio Rodolfo Riddle tied the knot in Allende, Coahuila. After honeymooning in Michoacán, they settled in Eagle Pass.
Elvira and Octavio had six children between 1953 and 1961. Elvira Elena who died at childbirth, Rosa Elvira, María Isabel, Eva Lucía, Eduardo Atilio, and Enrique Octavio. To help overcome the grief of losing her first child, our father and aunt, Tía María, both teachers in EPISD encouraged mamá to go to school and get her GED. She followed their advice, and with our father as one of her teachers, obtained a High School Diploma.
Mamá was devoted to her family and was a woman of deep faith. Our family attended Our Lady of Refuge School and Church where mamá was a member of Las Guadalupanas, the Altar Society, and served as a Eucharistic Minister. Her voice could also be heard as a proud member of the Spanish mass choir. We also remember mamá as being quite industrious. She would spend countless hours at the sewing machine outfitting her young daughters with dresses and matching bows and as teenagers with evening party dresses.
Highly entrepreneurial, mamá looked for ways to bring additional income to her household. She sold World Book Encyclopedia and Dictionaries door to door introducing many young families to this educational resource. After every Thanksgiving, our home became a mini tamale factory as mamá made her savory tamales to sell for the holidays. We remember people calling their orders in early – you did not want to miss Elvira’s tamales! Her largest order, 60 dozen tamales, came from the King Ranch and were served at a dinner for Lyndon B. Johnson and the Shah of Iran. We marveled at her ability, along with Doña Licha, her trusted assistant, to deliver this order and all other orders on time, never cutting corners. One of mamá’s most rewarding job, yet challenging due to her limited English, was that of substitute teacher. Here she became Vice Principal Jesus Rubio’s ⁺ go-to substitute as mamá would never turn down an assignment; whether it be biology, history, chemistry, English, or P.E. – she reported for duty. During one entire year, she taught high school Spanish, and with help from her sister-in-law, developed lesson plans ensuring that her students would not miss out on this important subject.
Mamá had a wealth of friends and relationships, whether through her work in the church, her activities with the Pan American Roundtable or as a proud member of the Texas Aggie Mom’s Club. Perhaps what we admire most about mamá is her incredible selflessness. As an educator our father was determined that his children would be well rounded and have as many academic opportunities as possible. Due to his encouragement his three daughters, Rosa, Mari, and Eva, were exchange students in Austria, Canada, and Australia. In their place mamá welcomed three additional daughters Terezinha from Brazil, Shelly from South Africa, and Anne- Marie from Austria. While she would have rather kept her youngest son, Enrique in Eagle Pass, during high school she supported him as he attended an east coast boarding school, thanks to a full scholarship from A Better Chance program. We all obtained advanced degrees graduating from Brown University, Texas A&M, the University of California, and the University of Texas. Our professional lives took us to work in Mexico, Europe, and throughout the U.S. and Canada. What this meant for mamá is that her children were not home during some of their teenage years and in their early 20s. She was the odd one out when she went back to Mexico and visited with family who peppered her with questions about when her daughters and sons would marry and didn’t she wish she was a grandmother by now? Mamá’s answer, if my children are happy, I am happy.
Mamá, like so many mothers, was a caregiver. She cared for her sister, her mother-in-law, her mother, her husband and her sister-in-law in the last years of their lives And it is here that we, the Riddle children, owe a debt of gratitude to mamá’s cherished friends who would call, visit, bring her groceries, and goodies during this last decade. You were mamá’s angels as were the many caring and loving providers who made sure mamá was comfortable. Thank you, ‘gracias, y que en paz descanse nuestra querida madre Elvira’.
Elvira Ferriño Riddle is preceded in death by her husband Octavio R. Riddle and sister-in-law Maria I. Riddle. She is survived by her children, Rosa Elvira, Maria Isabel and Jeff Tsuji (spouse), Eva Lucía and Stephen Hooker (spouse), Eduardo Atilio and Gloria Vidal (spouse), and Enrique Riddle and Susan Badarack (spouse) as well as several grandchildren and great grandchildren.
If you wish to honor Elvira, the family requests donations be made payable to Our Lady of Refuge Church, 804 N. Ceylon Street, Eagle Pass, TX 78852
