Obit: Ronnie, are you there?

Esther Beluca Chavez Barrio left us April 22, 2025, to be with our Heavenly Father. Born in El Rosier Farm, Alquizar, Cuba in 1933, she was one of seven children, the youngest of four girls. She was placed in the Cuban military school as a young child under Batista’s rule and it didn’t take long before she was made captain of her class.
She had but one memory of her father, which was of him coming home from work with a loaf of bread in hand. He passed away when she was six. Her mother, Clara, raised the seven children with the help of family and friends. In the early 1950’s with papers in hand, she and several siblings boarded Cuban Airlines (Pan Am) and went to the Bronx in New York looking for a better future. She worked with her sisters at the Sheraton and Plaza Hotels in New York City where in the day, were filled with Hollywood movie stars. Her most famous clients were Lucille Ball and Mary Kay, to name a few.
Life later took her to Union City, NJ, where she would meet Rodolfo Barrio. She once told her mother, “He is so skinny!” Her mother
replied, “Don’t worry, you’ll fatten him up, besides he’s got strong legs, good for carrying things up the stairs”….they lived on the upper floor of the apartment building. They married in April of 1959.
Esther was the matriarch of the Chavez family. Her attitude was always, …oh yeah?, watch me…which was the case when she took the family car, that was a standard – stick shift and determined to learn to drive it – she did, except when she returned, the parking spot was taken -she was caught red handed by Rudy when he returned home from work. In the mid 1960’s, she decided she was done with the snow and headed south to Miami to raise their three children. Esther and her sister Lisa opened their own beauty salon, Lisa’s Beauty Salon which they owned for many years. Later in life they moved to Orlando, then to High Springs, Florida, with their final stop in Westcliffe, Colorado, to live with their daughter and son-in-law, Barb and Ron Beckner. Westcliffe was filled with many gatherings at home and around the community, cooking her amazing Cuban recipes for friends and family. She was the queen of the kitchen in the family, and some of her family members were amazing cooks. She had the reputation for the Best Black Beans ever! Her other passion was with Walt Disney and all paraphernalia. She couldn’t get enough of Disney.
As the family matriarch, her love for her family was unwavering. She was proud of her three children but even more so of her three grandchildren. Everyone who got to know Esther, could say she gave them a word or two of advice, set them in the right path or taught them something new. That was her way….always sharing her life experiences. Esther was spirited, had a zest for life and always loved being the center of attention.
Esther was preceded in death by her husband, Rodolfo Barrio with whom she was married 64 years, son Rudy Barrio, many
of her siblings, and her parents. Survived by her sister Hildelisa Hernandez, daughter Barbara (Ron) Beckner, son Robert
(Christy) Solano, grandchildren Jonny (Candy) Saldana, Chichi Barrio, Madison Solano and many many nieces and nephews.
Her spirited zest for life will be missed by many friends and family but our hearts are filled with her memories, and knowing she is home with our Father.
Services to be held at our Lady of the Assumption Catholic Church, 109 South Fifth Street, Westcliffe, CO, on Saturday, May 17th at 11 a.m.