Benny Joseph Andres

BENNY JOSEPH ANDRES

Nov. 18, 1941 - Oct. 5, 2011

Benny passed away in Van Nuys, CA on Wednesday, October 5, 2011 of natural causes. He was 69 yrs. old.
Our father was born on November 18, 1941 in San Francisco to Grace Maxine Weston and Bernardo (Benny) Y. Andres. His father was from the Philippine Islands and his mother hailed from Iowa and was of German decent. Benny was raised in Brawley and attended Ruth Reid elementary and Brawley High School. In addition to starting several small businesses, he worked for various produce companies as a forklift operator. He raised his family in Brawley and Calipatria. Though he was not well educated, he was bright, articulate and creative. He was tough on us kids, but taught us things we still set our clocks by to this day. Our dad was an early proponent of nutrition and fitness, preaching daily exercise. To the very end, he ate natural, healthy foods. He discouraged TV and encouraged books. He was an avid reader, particularly of American History. He also had a habit of reading the dictionary. He was a car buff. An athlete in his young years, he was ambidextrous. He was a sports fan, particularly of professional football. He had a deep appreciation of the earth and could grow anything. For the last 13 yrs. he resided in Los Angeles. Spending time with his children and grandchildren brought him peace and happiness.
He is survived by his children and their spouses, Benny and Tamara Andres, of Charlotte NC, Denisia and James Chatfield II of San Diego CA, Eric and Heather Andres of San Diego CA, Roman and Jena Andres of Hardin Montana; His Grandchildren, Alyssa, Abram, Solana, Santana, Elena, Jimmy, John Roman, Isabella, Lola, Luke, Denisia, Sevilla, and Layla; His Brother and sister-in- law, Vincent an Vivien Andres of MI; niece, Christine Andres of NYC; sister, Arlene Henriques and family of WA; aunt, Cely and cousin, Anthony Andres of San Francisco; stepmother, Augustina Andres; step-sister, Yolanda Valdez both of Brawley, and numerous relatives in Hawaii and San Francisco.
Services will be held on Saturday, October 22, 2011 at Saint Mary Margaret Catholic Church in Brawley, with a rosary at 9 a.m., a mass will be held at 10 a.m., followed by the burial at Riverview Cemetery in Brawley.