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¡Esta Risto!

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As a boy, Risto Rubio saw how hard his father worked to support a family of 10.
As a young man, Rubio saw how the U.S. Army offered him an opportunity to serve his country.
And now today, as a well-known Latino in the local mortuary business and throughout the community, Rubio sees how his life experiences, his cultura and his fate all came together to bring grieving families in Kern County much-needed comfort.
“This is where I’m supposed to be,” said Rubio, Mission Family Mortuary’s newest vice president, specializing in funeral arrangements for Hispanics. “When you lose someone you love, you don’t need a funeral home — you need a friend. I feel that I am that friend to anyone who walks through our doors.”
People person
It was two years ago that Evaristo Lopez Rubio first joined Mission Family Mortuary on California Avenue, a local funeral home founded and co-owned by Ray Mish, David Mish and Kenny L. Mount Jr. The Mish family has been in the funeral business for more than 60 years, eventually selling it to a large corporation but later re-opening as a family-run operation in 2004.
Rubio — no relation to Kern County Fifth District Supervisor Michael Rubio — previously worked at Hillcrest Memorial Park & Mortuary for six years and at the South Kern District Cemetery in Arvin for 12 years, five as the manager.
Though he enjoyed his work at both of those locations, there just wasn’t enough interaction with people, Rubio said.
He needed more connection, more freedom to express his empathy — especially since he’s been there, in the throes of devastating grief over the loss of a loved one.
“When people come here to me, I tell them that I will take care of them, whatever they need, I’ll take care of everything ... and I make sure they know I’ve been in their shoes, I’ve sat in those chairs,” said Rubio, pointing to the seating area in his office reserved for grieving families. “This is the best place for me to use my heart, my sympathy.”
It’s those reasons and more that the close-knit staff at Mission Mortuary have welcomed the presence of Rubio and why his promotion to a vice-president was really a no-brainer, said Ray Mish.
“Risto knows Latino families — he understands their culture and what it is they need for comfort,” Mish said. “Risto, like the rest of us here at Mission, doesn’t see families as a dollar sign — he sees them as people with wants, desires to make their loved one’s funeral as an honor to that person.”
In fact, from the moment a Hispanic familia walks through the doors at Mission, Risto is ready to help.
“He’s incredible,” said Mount, also a counselor/consultant at Mish, who specializes in Irish and Scottish services. “Immediately, Risto talks to them in Spanish — he’s so approachable and friendly.
“I’d have to say Risto’s best quality is his personality — he is a truly, really nice guy.”
And no, nice guys don’t always finish last.
His destiny
For Rubio, 48, it was his destiny to enter the funeral business.
“This is where I’m supposed to be, it’s what I’m supposed to do because you know who I have? I have God — it’s all about what God wants me to be,” said the faithful parish member of Our Lady of Guadalupe Catholic Church. “You have to have balance in your life — if I don’t go to Mass every Sunday, no balance.”
Rubio also finds the all-important element of balance in his family, another “meant to be” part of his life.
He and his wife, Gerry, celebrated their 25th anniversary last November, even though her first impressions of her husband-to-be weren’t all that great.
“I thought he looked like a hoodlum because he was wearing overalls, a white T-shirt and had long hair,” she said with a laugh.
Later, however, Gerry would realize you really shouldn’t judge a book by its cover, so to speak — or in this case, an hombre by his wardrobe.
The Rubios are the parents of three daughters — Stephanie, 23; Jennifer, 22; and Melissa, 16.
Rubio credits his loving wife as his constant support system.
“The way my wife does her work and puts everything into everything she does — she is my inspiration,” he said.
Of course, the Señora Rubio says that inspiration goes both ways.
“He’s just so honest and has so much compassion,” she said. “He puts everything into his job because he loves what he does.”
In fact, Gerry says, it’s quite common for the phone to ring at the Rubio home during the evening hours since that compassionate man she married always makes sure families can contact him at any time.
How does Rubio’s family feel about this?
“I used to say, ‘Don’t they know that you’re off and at home?’” said Gerry, who works as a dental assistant. “Then I realized that it’s part of his job and that if I were in the same situation, I would want to be able to make a call like that, too.”
So despite those occasional interruptions, Gerry knows her husband is making a difference by working hard and working with his heart.
“He’s perfect for the job, and the job is perfect for him,” she said.

Reaping rewards
Another perfect task for Rubio is to share his own inspiring story at middle schools, junior highs and high schools throughout Kern County, many of which have primarily Latino student bodies.
Calling his program “Looking Into The Future,” Rubio gathers other local professionals and takes them along to speak at student assemblies on the importance of education.
Rubio tells about how the youngest of eight kids born and raised in east Bakersfield — attending Mt. Vernon Elementary, Compton Junior High and EBHS — went from picking onions in the fields with his family to jumping from airplanes as a paratrooper and eventually, earning the title of VP at one of the area’s most well-known funeral homes and becoming an inspirational speaker.
Then, of course, the students are also seeing an active community member — Rubio — who just happens to be Latino, standing right in from of them.
“I want kids to see if I can make it, then anyone can make it,” said Rubio, whose current-day fashion tastes have certainly changed from “back in the day” — he’s traded overalls and T-shirts for suits and ties . “I tell them, ‘If you want to know the key to success, I’ll tell you: The key to success is not letting anyone else hold that key.’”
Using his personal journey as an example, Rubio offers students a tangible example of what can be accomplished, no matter their circumstances.
The professionals he brings along also relate their life experiences to the students as well as how determination, persistence, hard work, commitment and staying in school are vital to them reaching their own personal goals.
Rubio says he always emphasizes that the best things in life result from dedication.
“Do the best you can at your job, your family, whatever it is and don’t look for rewards — when you put in 110 percent, don’t worry, the rewards will come,” said Rubio with a smile.
In 2006, Rubio received the Golden Apple Award, honoring him for his contributions to public education. The Association of California School Administrators (ACSA) presents the Golden Apple Award to a layperson who is not directly connected with public education, but who has helped promote education through his/her efforts.
In the nomination for the Golden Apple, Rubio was described as “a very talented and dynamic individual that is always aspiring to improve the communities of Lamont, Shafter, McFarland, Weedpatch, Arvin and the Kern High Schools in innovative ways.”
Today, the shiny metallic apple — Rubio likes to call it his “Golden Manzana” — sits proudly in the foyer at Mission Family Mortuary to show that the staff is very much a part of the community.
Rubio has also made personal donations by collecting and delivering food baskets during the Christmas holidays. He has also hosted memorial services for war veterans at the South Kern District Cemetery in Arvin.

‘A sign of respect’
While receiving the recent promotion to VP at Mission is yet another award bestowed on Rubio, titles aren’t really his thing.
“To me, titles have not impressed me,” Rubio said. “I’m honored that they wanted to make me a VP, though, because they’re telling me I’m doing a good job — it’s a sign of respect.
“But around here, we’re all a team — I’m no better than them and they’re no better than me.”
Because in the end, the goals for the Mission staff are the same, according to Rubio.
“We’re here to take care of families, so they can take care of each other,” he said. “I am a simple person — for me, what I do is about families. That’s it. It’s just that simple.”