Manuela Molina Smith

It is with great sadness and broken hearts that we announce the passing of our family matriarch, Manuela Molina Smith. On Sunday, November 24, 2024, she passed away peacefully at her home surrounded by several family members. Manuela was a beloved mother, daughter, sister, aunt, grandmother, great grandmother, and great-great Grandmother. She was 96 years old. 

Manuela was born on February 19, 1928, in Alhambra, CA to Reyes G. Molina and Maria Valdivia Molina. She was preceded in death by her loving husband Darwin Mayo Smith, daughters Angelica and Maria Lourdes (Luly), parents Reyes G. and Maria Valdivia Molina, brothers Reyes Jr., Jose, Narcizo, Baudelio, Carlos, Enrique, and Ricardo, as well as sisters Margarita Valenzuela, Delia Molina, and Maria Helena Gonzales.

Manuela, known to many as Manuelita, or Nellie, was a great cook and caterer. She boasted a long resume of working at several iconic Las Cruces restaurants such as The Central Square Café and The Shamrock, the Las Cruces Country Club, Gamboa’s Restaurant. But cooking was not her only skill. 

She loved mathematics, and had a knack for management, and throughout her career, she combined her skill sets to help improve important institutions such as the Las Cruces Public School System, where she managed the cafeterias for several locations, and the Las Cruces Manor Senior Living Facility, where her work went beyond the kitchen and into the community. In addition to being the head cook, she also led an experienced-based community career education program, earning them the Project Excel Award from Las Cruces Public Schools. 

In more recent memory, though, she was well known for her time spent as head cook at Jose Murphy’s restaurant inside the Sun Lanes Bowling Alley. The restaurant was known for their burrito bañado, loaded nachos, and green chile Border Burger. According to a Las Cruces Sun News article Manuela’s own special flare and flavor to those dishes were the “secret weapon” that kept people coming back! 

Manuela was also known for her generosity by those who worked with her. She made sure the college students that worked for her never lacked for food and she always encouraged them to prioritize their studies. She was a mentor to many and was greeted with appreciation and gratitude anytime she ran into those students over the years. 

Manuela was a knowledge-seeker and continually sought to enhance her craft, achieving several certifications and course completions from local and national institutions such as the University of North Dakota, and the University of Houston, Texas.

Outside of her work, Manuela had many hobbies, including crocheting, gardening, dancing with the Las Perlitas Ballet Folklorico Dance Group, and watching novellas in the evenings. She made beautiful doilies and blankets, and passed along many of these hobbies, especially her green thumb, to her daughter and granddaughters, who continue the tradition. She was also present at every one of her family’s special occasions, of which there were many!

What Manuela leaves behind is a legacy of love, strength, independence, wisdom, and success, which inspires the generations that come behind her. She is mourned by her daughter Linda Smith Enriquez, son Ernest Mayo Smith (Cyrena), sister Graciela Barela and brother Heriberto Molina, all of Las Cruces, NM. Also mourning are nine grandchildren, seventeen great grandchildren, and five great-great grandchildren, and many nieces, nephews, and cousins.

A funeral service for Manuela will take place on Tuesday, December 10, 2024, Rosary will begin at 10:30am, followed by mass at 11:00am, and will take place at St. Genevieve’s Church. Manuela will be laid to rest at Masonic Cemetery.

Pallbearers will be Christopher Serna, Cynthia Serna, Esteban Remillard, Lucy Remillard, Arianna Serna, Nicolas Serna, Nathan Serna, and Miguel Lopez.

Honorary pallbearers are Gregorio De La Torre, Jeff Mercier, Greg Jr. and Kiri De Le Torre, and Estevan De La Torre.