Amelia Yvonne Cisneros

FORT WORTH - Amelia (Kiki) Yvonne Cisneros, 85, passed away peacefully at home on January 8, 2024, surrounded by her loving family and tabby cat. She survived cancer more than 23 years after an oncologist told her she only had a few months to a couple of years to live. Her remarkable strength was rivaled only by the magnitude of her love for her family and friends.
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Funeral Mass: 1:30 p.m. Wednesday, January 17, 2024 in St. Patrick Cathedral. Interment: Mount Olivet Cemetery. A reception will follow immediately at Los Vaqueros Stockyards. Visitation: 5 to 8 p.m. with a Rosary beginning at 6 p.m. Tuesday, January 16, 2024 at Mount Olivet Chapel.
Kiki Cisneros exuded beauty and grace, imparting love and care to those who had the great fortune of knowing her. Kiki's life was defined by her faith and family. She had a way of elevating ordinary moments. A scoop of Neapolitan became an ice cream social. A sliced watermelon? A picnic.
She was born February 12, 1938, and was the youngest of 13 children. Kiki graduated from Trible Technical High School and entered the workforce. For Johnny Valentine Cisneros, seeing her was love at first sight. He spotted Kiki working at Monnig's Department Store when he stopped in to purchase cologne. She was the most beautiful woman he had ever seen. It was the happiest coincidence when she applied for the hostess position at El Chico, where Johnny was a busboy. The couple married in 1960 and settled into family life in Fort Worth's historic north side with sons, Johnny and Michael.
Since elementary school, Kiki and Susie Puente were inseparable. They remained close friends throughout their lives. It was rare to see one without the other at any social event. (Of which, there were many!)
At any party, one could expect Kiki to be the best-dressed person in the room and making her way to the center of the dance floor, especially if music by Rod Stewart or Julio Iglesias was playing. She was glamourous, beautiful, and usually giggling about something - surely an inside joke with one of many family members or friends. Happiness encircled her.
She worked at Edison's while her boys were in school. Her dream of opening a family restaurant, Mi Casa, was realized in 1979. She eventually left Edison's in 1983 when she and Johnny opened a second restaurant, Los Vaqueros, aptly named after her two vaqueros - her sons. She retired from being in the restaurant full-time in 2000 and spent her time gardening, visiting with friends, and taking wonderful care of her grandchildren. She was a devout member of St. Patrick Cathedral.
Johnny and Michael were the loves of her life. She adored her sons and their families. Kiki delighted in being a grandmother and formed strong relationships with her grandchildren that honored their individuality. She was the kind of grandmother who played hard and fostered creativity and curiosity whether by running through the sprinklers in the summer or warming the sheets with a hair dryer in winter. No matter the season, she provided comfort (and so many stacks of pancakes.)
Kiki wrote that her greatest accomplishment was knowing and loving her great-grandchildren.
She will be deeply missed by so many.
Kiki was preceded in death by her parents, Pete Martinez and Elina Acampo Martinez; siblings, Julia Martinez, Isabel Martinez Delgado, Mike Martinez, Richard "Sonny" Martinez, Helen Martinez Rodriguez, Jimmy Martinez, Pete Martinez, Vera Martinez, Mary Martinez Garza, and Robert Martinez.
She is survived by her sister, Gloria Martinez Cardona; brother, Johnny Martinez (Pam); sons, Johnny Cisneros (Vicki) and Michael Cisneros (Stacey); grandchildren, Sonya Cisneros Wierzowiecki (John), Dr. Cassidy Liland (Davidson), Tara Blythe (Emily), Alanna Cisneros (Chase Dodson), and John Michael "Chance" Cisneros; great-grandchildren, Madison Liland, Amelia Wierzowiecki, and Davidson "Davy" Liland; along with many beloved nieces, nephews, cousins and friends.