Aurora “Bessie” Virden
1929-2013
Mrs. Aurora “Bessie” Carrera Rhodes Virden passed away on November 7, 2013 after a short, but courageous battle with cancer.
Bessie was born in Oshkosh, Nebraska to Lupe and Ambrosia Carrera. When she was a youngster, her family moved to Colorado. Bessie sunk her roots into Colorado Springs and settled down to raise her family. She grew up and is part of the history of the city. You may have seen her waitressing at the historic “Cotton Club” and Conway’s Red Top. She worked hard and saved those tips for the down payment on her home.
Bessie was also one of the first, and most skilled, high-tech workers in this area, first at Ampex and later at Texas Instruments. On the social scene, Bessie was a charter member of Colorado Springs “Club 400.”
Bessie loved her family and they returned the favor, cherishing the blessing of having her in their lives. She was a devoted mother of five, a grandmother to twelve and a great grandmother to twenty-two. She was preceded in death by her parents: Mr. and Mrs. Lupe Carrera; siblings: Joe, Pete, Felix and Frankie Carrera; husbands: Edgar Rhodes and Gene Virden; son, Edgar Rhodes Jr.; daughter, Peggy Parker; and grandsons: Eric Moon and Ross Hopper. Her daughters: Patricia Hopper, Jacalyn Roberts and Deborah Moon, and their husbands: John Hopper, Johnnie Roberts and Norman Moon, survive Bessie. Her siblings: Aurelia “Lee”, Tony, Mickey, Lupe Jr., Michael, and their families will also dearly miss her.
We mourn the loss of our beloved Bessie, but rejoice that she has found peace and a well-earned rest from her labors! Arrangements by Shrine of Remembrance.
A visitation will be held from 6:00 to 7:00 p.m. with a prayer service at 7:00 p.m. on Wednesday, November 13, 2013 at Shrine of Remembrance Funeral Home. A funeral service will be at 10:00 a.m. on Thursday, November 14, at Shrine of Remembrance “America the Beautiful” Chapel. Interment will be at Evergreen Cemetery.