Anna "Anita" Montoya

Anna “Anita” Maria Montoya, March 16, 1948 – March 4, 2022,Age 73, from El Prado, passed away peacefully on March 4, 2022, surrounded by family and friends in her beloved Taos Valley. Anita is preceded in death by her parents Ernesto and Laura Montoya from Cañon, maternal grandparents Maximiliano and Emelina Lucero, paternal grandparents Vidal and Zoriada Montoya, siblings Zoriada “Pinky” Montoya, Robert and Joseph Montoya (Annabelle), husband Ruben “Flappers” Montoya, and in-laws Claudio and Frances Montoya of El Prado. Anita is survived by her children Melissa, Gary and Amy Montoya, sisters Natalia Montoya (Leroy), Pauline (Melvin) Ambrose and brother Ruben (Roseanne) Montoya, sister-in-law Mary Alice (Ramon) Sandoval, brother-in-law Raymond (Linda) Montoya, as well as numerous nephews and nieces that she loved very much. She is also survived by her three loyal dogs (Christina, Chico and Milo), and one grand-dog “Dusty”.  Anita was born in Cañon, and was the 5th child out of seven total children of Ernesto and Laura Montoya. Anita grew up on lands in Cañon belonging to her maternal grandfather in the center of the village. She lived next to her maternal grandparents, and other extended Lucero family. Throughout Anita’s life, she would fondly recall stories about village life in Cañon, her grandparents homestead in Taos Canyon and many stories about various family members. Anita married Ruben Montoya in 1966, and moved to El Prado to start their family. For a brief period, Anita and her husband moved to Indio, California in search of better opportunities for their family; however, the call of family and the longing for home called them back to Taos where they continued to grow their family. After arriving back to Taos, she worked for several decades at the local hospital as a certified nursing assistant listening to the stories of local ancianos, assisting with numerous births, comforting the sick, and holding many elders’ hands as they died. She also worked at various retirement homes, home health care agencies, and an agency devoted to the care of individuals with developmental disabilities, as well as a private caretaker for many people in the Taos Valley, including caring for her own parents. At the age of forty-five her husband passed away suddenly leaving her to become a single mother. While life changed dramatically after the passing of her husband, she proved to be stronger than she thought of herself, often at times ignoring her own needs so her children would not lack in anything. Anita was known for her gentleness, humility, nurturing spirit, servant heart, generosity, empathy and compassion, mischievousness, good humor, and love and devotion for her people, land and water. Anita enjoyed attending church at Good News Christian Fellowship, she enjoyed talking and listening to the stories of her people, taking care of sick relatives and friends, sitting on the porch in El Prado overlooking the valley with her dogs watching the hummingbirds pass by, tending her flower beds and trees, watching her “stories”, cleaning and decorating the graves of departed family members on a yearly basis, cooking and baking for others. Anita’s baking and cooking was loved by many in Taos, and she was always known for gifting baked goods to someone.

A celebration of life for Anita will commence on Friday March 18, 2022 at 10:00am at Good New Christian Fellowship Church in Ranchitos with a burial service at Dolores Cemetery in El Prado. A meal will follow the burial service at the fellowship hall at Good News Christian Fellowship Church. Arrangements by Rivera Family Funeral Home.  To share a memory, please visit our website at www.riverafuneralhome.com