Dick F. Apodaca

Dick F. Apodaca, 91, passed peacefully on Sunday, April 9, 2017, surrounded by his loving children. Dick was born in Las Cruces on July 18, 1925 to Ricardo and Maria Apodaca. Only days after his eighteenth birthday, he enlisted in the United States Navy, serving as a radioman aboard the USS Concord and USS Richmond in the Asia-Pacific Theatre in World War II. After the War, he returned to Las Cruces to earn bachelor's and master's degrees from New Mexico College of Agricultural and Mechanical Arts (now New Mexico State University), where his athletic prowess earned him letters in varsity football and basketball. He began his career in education, serving in Mesilla and Las Cruces public schools as a teacher and coach, and then as principal of Washington Elementary School. In 1958 his career shifted to the U.S. Foreign Service. As a Foreign Service Officer he served in postings to Peru, Brazil, Honduras, Chile and Washington, D.C. with his wife, Isabelle, and children. His assignments drew upon his intellect, experience as an educator, multilingual talent, charm, and compassion for humanity, and included directorships of U.S programs abroad created under President Kennedy's Alliance for Progress and the U.S. Agency for International Development Food for Peace initiative. In 1978 he was appointed U.S.A.I.D. Representative to Chile in Santiago. He retired from the diplomatic service in 1988 and returned with Isabelle to his native Las Cruces. In retirement, he honed his tennis skills, winning State medals and competing at the national level in Senior Olympics, and shared his wisdom and great sense of humor with his family, especially grandchildren. He was preceded in death by Isabelle, his wife of sixty-six years. He is survived by his children, Annette, Patrick, Richard, Yvette and Joseph, his seven grandchildren, and his four siblings, Alfred, Cuca, Henry and Gilbert. Family and friends are invited to celebrate Dick's life on Monday, April 24, 2017, at St. Genevieve Roman Catholic Church, 100 S. Espina Street, Las Cruces. A rosary will begin at 9.45 a.m. and a Mass at 10.15 a.m. Following interment with military honors at Masonic Cemetery, a reception will be held at the church hall. PDF Printable Version First Visitation
Monday, April 24, 2017 9:00am - 9:30am,
Saint Genevieves

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Service Information
Monday, April 24, 2017 10:30am,
Saint Genevieve's

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Interment Location

Masonic Cemetery

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