Juan Valdovinos Rodriguez was born on January 8, 1941 to Nicolasa Valdovinos and Jesus Rodriguez in Uruapan, Michoacan, Mexico. He was one of eight children; Maria, Luis, Celia, Angela, Nelda, Maria Magdalena, and Jesus.

Dad had a gypsy soul as a young man and traveled all around Mexico working a variety of jobs that taught him the value of hard work; a butcher, an autobody repairman, TV repairman, even a stint in building a dam, but Dad believed that one of the greatest joys in life was music and as a result he was an excellent dancer. Dad loved Glenn Miller, Benny Goodman, Nat King Cole, and Bing Crosby, but he also enjoyed a good Mambo, Perez Prado, Mike Laure, and classical orchestra's, he was especially fond of Waltz music, the Blue Danube was one of his favorites. We all have joyful memories of dancing to La Bala and In The Mood on New Year's Eve.

Dad loved to cook. He would butcher the goat for Birria and the pig for Carnitas. Carnitas were a connection to his beloved Michoacan that he longed to see again until the very end. We'd like to believe that a little piece of his soul was happy to finally visit the Parque Nacional Barranca del Cupatitzio with its beautiful waterfalls and the Tarasco people selling their wares. Food was an expression of not just his exceptional cooking skills, but of his love for everyone whom his food would nourish.

Dad never met a stranger. From cashiers to folks that worked the meat counter, to bank tellers and simply anyone he was with for more than a minute, he would strike up a conversation. Dad wasn't shy. He even approached a University of Arizona basketball player at the post office for his autograph for his daughter Magdalena because she is a fan and he knew she would love it.

Dad preferred attending morning mass at St. Margaret's because it was accompanied by music; guitars, trumpets, and singing. He would later volunteer for the Society of St. Vincent de Paul because he believed in helping others; an example his children would later follow in the form of military service, community outreach, and civic engagement. The winter holidays were his favorites; Thanksgiving turkey and fixings baskets to distribute and toy drives for families that didn't have gifts for Christmas. Somehow, the whole family was recruited for both, a true family affair.

Dad was proud of his family. He loved to tell friends and strangers about his sons, daughter, and grandkids and their accomplishments. He loved his wife's cooking and crocheting. Her ability to nurture and love on the family, the counter to his quiet affection for all of us.

Dad grappled with all his health ailments with a stoic determination to not let it limit his ability to be independent until the very end. He was strong-willed.

In his last moments on earth, we played all his favorite songs and those tunes that will forever conjure up memories of him and our family of which remain, Virginia, our mother, his wife of 61 years, his eldest son Abraham and his wife Micaela, Salvador and his wife Rosa Linda, his son Juan Arturo, his son Jesus and his wife Elvia, Maria Magdalena and her husband Armando his grandchildren, Victoria, Sulema, Andrea, Lisa, Anthony, Krsytal, Sergio, Esperanza, and Enrique, and 11 great-grandchildren, and countless life-long friends that were very much so family to us throughout the years.

Adios , Goodbye , Syonara , Arrivederci , Shalom , Au Revoir , Auf Wiedersehen, Papa. We'll see you in the rays of the sun, the snorting laugh of a stranger, the smell of Gardenias and Chrysanthemums.