- Date Of Birth: January 26, 1928
- Date Of Death: June 5, 2019
- State: Pennsylvania
Elminda (Padilla) Rivera, 91, of Bethlehem, passed away peacefully on Thursday June 5, 2019 at her home surrounded by her loving family. She was the loving wife of the late Vidal Rivera. Elminda was born on January 26, 1928 in Mayaguez, Puerto Rico and moved to New York in 1942 at the age of 14.
She worked as a seamstress at the Bethlehem Togs. Elminda “Dona Nina” as all knew her, worked as a cleaning lady and switchboard operator for Lehigh University and in 1970 brought the union to the University. With very minimal formal education , Elminda still managed to learn seven different languages , students from the university helped her to learn. Over the years Dona Nina ran several consignment shops and restaurauts. She was a member of Holy Infancy Catholic Church, Bethlehem. Elminda loved cooking, sewing, selling Avon and taking care of her family and people in the community. She welcomed all of the neighborhood children into her home, they all called her “mom”. Elminda would feed them and even discipline them as if they were her own. Everybody had chores even the “adopted kids” There was no free ride in the Rivera House. Elminda was always a hard worker and great mother!
Survivors: She will be lovingly remembered by her 7 Boys and 4 Girls; Vidal “Junior” Rivera and his fiancé Claribel, Jorge Surita, Hector Surita, Jay Velez, Norma Padilla, Dennis Matos, Victor Matos, Lourdes Matos, Edwin Rivera and Estrellita Rivera and many loving grandchildren. She was preceded in death by her daughter Diana Matos and a granddaughter. We will miss our mother dearly, but she is in company with her daughter and granddaughter, and god has welcomed her with open arms.
