Juanita Rodriguez

Our beloved Juanita “Janie” “Neni” Rodriguez peacefully passed away and was welcomed into the kingdom of heaven on Friday September 2, 2022, at Yakima Memorial Hospital surrounded by her loving family. She was born in the small town of Edinburg, Texas on March 17, 1955, the daughter of Teresa (Alvarez) and Ladislado Salazar.  In the early 1960’s, the Salazar family moved from Texas to Washington where Juanita and her siblings grew up in the small town of Crewport in Granger, WA. As a young girl, Juanita helped her family by working as a migrant farm laborer. The family would often travel to Albany, Oregon to pick strawberries and beans during the summers. It was during those times in Oregon that she made her fondest childhood memories with her Cedillo and Alvarez cousins.  Juanita went to school in Granger through the 8th grade, where she met her first husband Joe Garcia and had two children Cynthia and Mario Garcia. She later met the love of her life, Ramon Rodriguez in 1978 and they got married at Cristo del Valle Lutheran Church on November 20, 1993. Juanita and Ramon lived happily together for many years in Toppenish and Granger, where she spent her time raising and loving her family.  Throughout her life, Juanita worked very hard for many years in agriculture which included picking crops like asparagus, cherries, apples. She also spent several years working for Redman & Sons warehouse in Wapato and Snokist warehouse in Yakima. She later became a full time cook and helped take care of children at Sandy’s Daycare in Granger. She worked there until she became ill and could no longer work. Some of Juanita’s hobbies included going to yard sales with her sister, she loved listening to Cherry FM radio, and she enjoyed Tejano music and going out dancing with her husband. Above all, her most beloved hobbies included cooking and baking for her family. She was known to make the best homemade menudo, flour tortillas and sugar cookies. During Christmas time, Juanita enjoyed spending time together with her sisters and their mother Teresa as they all helped make tamales and play Loteria. At other holiday gatherings, the family always looked forward to her many other delicious homemade desserts. Juanita was proud that her love of cooking and baking was inherited by her granddaughters.  Juanita also very much loved to go camping every summer at her favorite spot La Wis Wis at Mount Rainier National Park. She was one of the first family members to ever go camping. She eventually started the tradition of having at least one large camping trip with the entire family where everyone would enjoy hiking, campfires, swimming at the Blue Hole and of course all the delicious food! Juanita was always known to overpack food and snacks to make sure there was enough to feed everyone. She also had a huge love for dogs, especially to her dogs Fluffy and Honey. Juanita was also an avid movie lover. Her absolute favorites were classic Western movies. Whether it was renting movies at Jane’s video store or going to the theater, watching movies with her family was one of her very favorite pastimes. She especially loved taking her grandchildren, nieces, and nephews to matinees on the weekends and always made sure to stop at Burger King to buy all the kids Whoppers before heading home. She also enjoyed watching old TV classics such as I Love Lucy, Bewitched, Green Acres and the Beverly Hillbillies. She also loved rooting for her favorite sports teams the San Francisco 49ers and LA Lakers, especially her favorite players Joe Montana and Kobe Bryant. More than anything in the world, Juanita loved and treasured her family with all her heart. No matter the time or day, she was always there to lend a helping hand to a family member in need. There was never a favor that she would turn down for anyone. The abundance of love she had for her entire family was evident, as everyone loved and adored her. Her presence and life on earth will be greatly missed but we will forever love and cherish the memories we had with our beloved “Neni”.  Juanita is survived by her husband Ramon Rodriguez; her children Cynthia (Rene) Garza, Mario Garcia and honorary sons Daniel Garcia Sanchez and Agustin Rodriguez Jr.; her grandchildren Rebecca (Armando) Cortez, Jaime Esqueda Jr., Adrian Guerrero, Alejandro Garza Jr., Reesah Garza, Mario Garcia Jr., Valerie Garcia, Victoria Garcia and Daija Garcia; and ten great-grandchildren. She is also survived by her four brothers Ladislado Jr. (Lupe) Salazar, Arturo (Angie) Salazar, Ervy Salazar, Alfredo Salazar and five sisters Delia (Manuel) Garza, Flora (Agustin) Rodriguez, Rosalinda Torres, Virginia Dominguez, and Elva Miranda.  She is preceded in death by her parents Teresa and Ladislado Salazar; her grandmother Maria Alvarez; and her grandson Nikolas Garza.    Family, friends, and others whose lives Juanita touched are invited to a viewing and visitation on Friday September 9, 2022, from 3:00 to 7:00 PM and a Christian Mass Service on Saturday September 10, 2022 at 12:00 PM. Both the viewing and funeral service will be held at Valley Hills Funeral Home in Sunnyside, WA with a burial to follow at Lower Valley Memorial Gardens also in Sunnyside, WA. To order memorial trees or send flowers to the family in memory of Juanita Rodriguez, please visit our flower store.