El que se humilla será ensalzado y el que se ensalza será humillado
He who humbles himself will be exalted and he who exalts himself will be humbled
Obituary
Ana "Gracita" Altagracia Toribio, a loving mother, grandmother, great-grandmother, sister, and friend passed away peacefully on Friday, September 27, 2024 at the age of 96.
She was born in El Coco, Villa Tapia, Dominican Republic on July 25, 1928 to father, Eleodoro Toribio and mother, Juana Mones. As one of nine siblings growing up in the Depression-Era 1930s, Ana learned quickly that family was everything. Ana was a mere 10 years old when her younger brother Juan was born and her mother had to make a choice - work all day on a sewing machine or care for her infant son. Ana decided to bring baby Juan to school with her so her mother could work. This arrangement lasted for about a month before the school told Ana she couldn't take a baby to school anymore, at which point she dropped out and so began her lifelong journey as a full-time caregiver.
In 1950, a 22-year-old Ana was eager to start a family of her own. Her and the girls would get together in the afternoons and would put on their prettiest dresses, all vying for one man's heart. Anastasio Toribio, "Bolo" as he was called by those who adored him, brought his guitar on this fateful day and his heart sang when he met Ana. Ana would recall the moment Bolo sang to her about the house they would live in "when they married" and her life changed. Their wedding was in a neighboring town and since cars were a rare luxury for Dominicans of the time, Ana was carried to the ceremony on a white horse.
The Dominican Civil War of 1965 split the Toribio family apart, as their home city of Santo Domingo was in the midst of an armed rebellion. Ana packed her children amongst 20 relatives into a 5 seat passenger car to escape the city carnage while bullets zipped overhead. But Bolo was a city firefighter and duty called for him to stay. Ever loyal to her beloved husband, Ana stood her ground and stayed in their family home waiting for Bolo to return...her only company was her infant daughter Elvira whom parting with she would not...and her son Juan "Nino", who would not part with her.
Ana was an industrious women of her time, starting a business making baby clothes while raising her 7 kids. To run an efficient business, she had her 7 children as employees and had very strict rules. Work was 7 days a week and no one could go out until their quota was met. On Fridays, she would use public transportation to go to the city markets and sell clothes. The Toribios would hand make over 100 articles of clothing every day.
Ana's life left her family with valuable lessons that can't be taught in school. She taught them that you need very little to help those in need, as she offered her home to others, despite fighting poverty herself. She believed in education and urged her children to stay in school because she did not have the same opportunity. She believed faith could move mountains. Most of all, she believed her family was the most important thing in the entire world.
Just as her family started with the strum of Bolo's guitar, Ana was ushered to heaven with song as her family and friends surrounded her in her final days.
Ana is survived by her two brothers, Juan & Efrain. She is predeceased by her brothers Jose, Roman, Antonio, and Chilo and her sisters Teresa and Idalina. She leaves behind a legacy with her 7 children, Mayra, Idelis & her husband Pedro, Juan "Nino" & his wife Ingrid, Xiomara & her husband Tony, Diogenes & his wife Waly, Belkis & her husband Juan Ramon, and Elvira & her husband Julio; a staggering 21 grandchildren, Sasha & her husband Edwin, Gaetano and his wife Talia, Yenny Flores & her husband Jota, Cesar & his wife Rebeca, Andelys & her husband Johan, Johnny, Lisbeth, Katherine & her husband Karlitos, Sanniel, Nicky and his wife Kourtney, Lanning, Sanyeli, Juanki & his wife Carolina, Karla & her husband Rafael, Mabel & and her husband Jairo, Gustavo, Waldy, Maria, Aldy, Elliel, and Lewis; and 12 great-grandchildren, Juan David, Alex, Danna, Olivia, Gal, Samuel, Ava, Leonardo, Joanna Lee, Adrian, Isabella, and Joel.
Paying Respect
