Guadalupe Torres Ruiz

Guadalupe Torres Ruiz

May 8, 1929 to October 17, 2025

Guadalupe Torres Ruiz, of Cerritos, California, passed away peacefully on October 17, 2025, at age of 96.

Guadalupe, also known as “Lupe” was born May 8, 1929 in San Jose, California. She was the eldest of seven children born to Anselmo and Santos Torres, who as young children immigrated to the United States during the Mexican Revolution. At the time of Lupe’s birth her parents who resided in the town of Santa Paula, California, were visiting family and working in San Jose.

As a young child growing up In Santa Paula, Lupe began her schooling in the Santa Paula Unified School District. Her father and mother provided for their growing family working for two of the largest citrus companies in California, including; Rancho Sespe Citrus Growers and the Limonera Citrus Company. During this time, labor disputes with the citrus companies and the economic pressures of the Great Depression prompted the Torres family to relocate to the neighborhood of Boyle Heights in Los Angeles.

As a young girl Lupe would continue her education, attending both Saint Vibiana’s Catholic Elementary School and then Belmont High School. As a young woman in the 1940s, she gained employment along with her sister, Rachel, at various movie theaters in the downtown Los Angeles area, such as the Million Dollar Theater and the Californian Theater. This time was considered the Golden Age of Mexican Cinema, Art, and Music. Her and her sister worked in box office ticket sales and as movie theater usherettes, hosting events such as movie premiers, musical performances and other major theater events.

On January 1, 1950, Lupe married Adrian Francis Ruiz at Saint Mary's Catholic Church located in Boyle Heights, California. While Adrian worked as a long-distance truck driver and Lupe managed the home, they raised a family of eight children. With the finances they had and their entrepreneurial vision, the couple purchased a service station business in the summer of 1967. They acquired the Esso Service Station located on Atlantic Blvd in East Los Angeles. This venture would prove to be beginning of the highly successful Ruiz Cerritos Enterprises.

The business expanded to the City of Bell and the City of Cerritos. Their service stations operated under various brand names, including; Ruiz Esso Service, Ruiz Enco Service, Ruiz Cerritos Exxon, Ruiz Cerritos Ultramar, and ultimately Ruiz Cerritos Valero. The business was a hub for motorists, specializing in comprehensive auto repair services and towing services, alongside a steady operation of gasoline sales.

In 1976 Lupe and Adrian would obtain and eventually purchase the service station property on the corner of South and Studebaker in Cerritos, California. Here they would become an integral part and a major driving force in the foundational successes of the city’s business community and the world-renowned Cerritos Auto Square.

Adrian and Lupe's tremendous love for each other and their family endured for many years, and in 2021 they celebrated 71 years of marriage.

Guadalupe was a woman defined by her devotion, intelligence, compassion, and beauty. She seamlessly balanced timeless traditional values with a modern, socially conscious vision for and of the future.

As a lifelong Catholic, everlasting love for her family and deep devotion to God were the cornerstones of her life. She faced and conquered many tremendous challenges with endless perseverance, strength, courage and grace.

She is survived by her children and family members including; Adrian F. Ruiz Jr. and Darlene Ruiz, Larry and Cecilia Brommer, Robert and Lisa Ruiz, Michael and Elizabeth Gifford and Daniel and Jeannette Ruiz. Lupe is also survived by her beloved sister Francis and brother-in-law Joe Fatta and her sister Rebecca Collins. She is also survived by 11 grandchildren and 14 great-grandchildren, numerous nieces and nephews, cousins and

Lupe is predeceased by her loving husband of 71 years Adrian Francis Ruiz, her sons David G. Ruiz, Jose E. Ruiz and Mark A. Ruiz and her daughter Mary Ruiz.

A celebration of Mass in honor of Lupe will be held on Monday, November 3 in Los Angeles, California at St. Mary’s Catholic Church.