Stella Frances Torres

Stella, who was a kind-hearted and loving wife, mother, grandma, and great-grandma, passed away peacefully at the age of 85 at Santa Barbara Cottage Hospital on November 11, 2025, surrounded by her loving family. Stella was born on March 9, 1940, in Santa Barbara to Tillie Torres and Pedro Gomez and raised by her loving grandmother, Secundina Yniguez.

She attended Lincoln Elementary School and Santa Barbara Junior High and graduated from Santa Barbara High School in 1958. After graduating, she worked at Penta Laboratories until the birth of her second child. She married the love of her life, Aurelio (Tony) Torres, in 1962 and was married for 53 years before his passing in May of 2016. Together, they raised four beautiful children.

Stella enjoyed many things over the course of her life, such as cooking, reading, watching her favorite novelas, going on her weekly shopping trips with her daughters and granddaughters, and going on family vacations to Las Vegas, Cabo San Lucas, and Palm Springs. She also enjoyed spending time with her family and babysitting all of her grandchildren over the years.

She was preceded in death by her husband Aurelio (Tony) Torres, her parents Tillie Torres & Pedro Gomez, her grandmother Secundina Yniguez, and her sisters Jessy, Barbara, and Jenny.

She is survived by her siblings Raul, Pete, Nancy and Mary, her loving children Letty Arroyo (Augie), Mary Ellen Ibarra (Armando), Cindy Torres, Tony Torres (Karla), her grandchildren Augie Jr., Robbie, Danny, Joey, Kristina, Lucia and Carlos, her great grandchildren Sophia, Benny, Joey Jr. and Jacob along with many nieces and nephews.

The Rosary will be held on Tuesday, December 2, 2025, at 7:00 PM at Welch-Ryce-Haider Funeral Chapels in Santa Barbara. The Funeral Mass will be celebrated on Wednesday, December 3, 2025, at 10:00 AM at Holy Cross Catholic Church, followed by burial at Calvary Cemetery.

During Stella's time on earth, she filled the lives of everyone who knew her with love, kindness, and joy, and her spirit will live on through the people she loved.