Victoria Torres

1940 - 2019

September 21, 1940 - March 20, 2019 Victoria Torres, a remarkable wife, mother, grandparent, and friend, passed away at age 78 surrounded by her loving family. An accomplished travel journalist and radio broadcaster, renowned for her prolific volunteerism, was known to thousands of readers, friends, and family simply as 'Vicki.' She was born in London, England, just days after the start of the German 'Blitz' airstrikes on the city. Eight years later, her parents moved Vicki and her siblings to America in pursuit of new economic opportunities, settling in the San Fernando Valley where she would spend the next seventy years of her life. On July 17, 1960 she met a young man on a blind date. The young man, Tony Torres, would enter the meeting with no intention of marriage and leave with the resounding sensation that he had met the love of his life. Vicki and Tony would marry on February 17, 1962, they remained madly in love for the next 57 years. She was a loving mother to her two children, Bart and Kathy, and a thoughtful and endearing grandmother to her five grandchildren, Morgan, Blake, Conner, Cole, and Cameron. Her dedication to improving the lives of others extended well beyond her family. For 38 years she served as a volunteer at the Northridge Hospital Medical Center and as a member of the Golden Hour Guild, a non-profit that fundraises to benefit the hospital's trauma center. Vicki had a passion for the entertainment industry, travel, and discovery. Particularly enamored with Las Vegas, she turned her love for the pace and mystique of the city into part of her life's work. She enjoyed a career as a professional radio broadcaster and award-winning travel journalist who specialized in Las Vegas and Laughlin. For 12 years, her weekly Sunday columns were featured in five major newspapers including: the Pasadena Star, the Los Angeles Daily News, and the San Gabriel Valley Tribune. Her "2-Minute Look at Laughlin" and "Las Vegas Connection" radio segments, where she reported on-air with her son, Bart Torres, were regular daily features broadcast on AM and FM radio stations throughout Las Vegas, Arizona, and Southern California. Vicki was a woman who left an impression on, if not touched, all who encountered her. She listened to people to understand them and contributed to their lives for no reason other than it was the right thing to do, and because she enjoyed it. A person with a unique perspective, from which came nothing but unwavering love. When a person lives their life so vividly, so beautifully, our memories of them are so rich that they never truly die. Vicki Torres, in her career, in her volunteer work, and as the matriarch of her family, was certainly a person who lived her life with such exuberance and vitality. The legacy of her words and actions will stay with us, lively and vibrant, for generations to come. In lieu of flowers, the family is requesting that donations be made to the Northridge Hospital Foundation in Vicki's honor. Payments to the Northridge Hospital Foundation can be made online at www.supportnorthridge.org or by check made to the Northridge Hospital Foundation at 18300 Roscoe Boulevard, Northridge, CA 91328-9920.