Frances (Barela) Pena

Funeral services for Frances Pena, 89, of Portales will be held at 1:00 PM, Wed., Aug. 3, 2022 in the Wheeler Mortuary Chapel with Pastor Jeff Fox officiating.  Burial will follow in the Portales Cemetery with Robert Pena, David Pena, Michael Pena, Aaron Pena, Travis Pardee, Michael Pena, Dennis Pena, and Ruben Rodriguez serving as pallbearers.  Daniel Pena and Jesse Robinson along with all of her other grandchildren and great-grandchildren will serve as honorary pallbearers.

Frances Pena was born Mar. 23, 1933 in Fort Sumner, NM to the home of Carolina (Hull) and Espiridion Barela and died at her home in Portales on the afternoon of July 29, 2022.  On Dec. 5, 1953 in Fort Sumner, she was married to Samuel Pena.  They moved to Portales in 1954, and she had made her home here since that time.  For several years, she was employed at the Portales Steam Laundry where she ran the press.  After she no longer worked there, she did baby sitting and housekeeping.  One of the places that she cleaned was Dr. Hilliard’s office building.  She was a member of St. Helen Catholic Church

She was an excellent cook, and made the best red and green chili and beans.  From the time of her growing up, she made flour tortillas.  She enjoyed doing embroidery and quilting, as well as gardening.  In addition, she loved to watch Spanish soap operas on television, but in recent years she had discovered online shopping, and that became her favorite hobby.

She is survived by six sons and a daughter-in-law, Robert Pena, Herman Pena, Dennis Pena, David Pena, Albert and Melinda Pena and Michael Pena all of Portales; a daughter and son-in-law, JoAnn and Israel Zapata of Morton, TX; ten grandchildren, Aaron (Darlene) Pena, Jessie Robinson, Daniel Pena, Emily Starr, Amanda Montoya, Misty Ruiz, Kristi (Ruben) Rodriguez, Zillah Pena, Michael Pena and Charlotte Roberts; twelve great-grandchildren and three great-great-grandchildren; a brother and sister-in-law, Manuel and Rosa Barela of Clovis and a sister, Ramona Sena also of Clovis.  She was preceded in death by her parents, six brothers, Felix, Elias, Willie, Danny, Richard and Frank Barela, who was also her twin; and two sisters, Mary Maes and Macedonia Lopez, a grandchild, a son, Danny Pena, a daughter, Gloria Pena and by her husband, Samuel, who died Sept. 13, 1999 after nearly 46 years of marriage.

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