Daniel Rios, Sr.

Lakeland, Florida - Daniel Rios was born March 10, 1928 in a small town in Puerto Rico called Toa Baja. He is survived by three daughters Rafaela, Maria & Daisy and one son Daniel Jr. He was the youngest of eight children and at a very young age worked to help his impoverished mother and siblings. He worked on sugarcane farm and later gained skills as a laborer. Due to the lack of work in Puerto Rico, he would travel by boat to the island of St. Thomas to work in construction, enabling him to learn more skills which led to becoming a bricklayer and mason. In 1948, he met the love of his life Ana Angelica Ruiz de Hernandez. In 1955, he and his wife and toddler son Daniel went to New York seeking a better life for his family. He was not able to bring all of his children , he left behind two daughters and one son. He had worked very hard to bring the other children to be with him and his wife to Spanish Harlem . He commuted every day to Long Island working for Vita Brothers Construction for many years to support his family. He later became self-employed and started Danny construction and worked with his brother Pancho who was a plumber. Some of his interest included playing billiards and his favorite, Dominoes. He enjoyed baseball and was a big fan of the New York Mets. On Long Island, he loved family gatherings, celebrations with lots of food music and dancing. In 2001, his wife of many years passed away from cancer. He is survived by his eldest daughter Rafaela and her husband Felix, Daughter Maria, Daniel Jr. and wife Andrea, and youngest daughter Daisy and her husband Joe. He had 13 Grandchildren, 15 Great grandchildren and 11 Great great grandchildren. He spent the latter years of his life in a nursing home where he succumbed to the progressive stages of Alzheimer’s. He was 93 years old.