Richard Lee Castillo
Richard L. Castillo, of Long Beach, California, passed away peacefully at his home on January 19, 2023. He was born at Cottage Maternity Home, which was then located in Long Beach, California. He was born to Felisita and Cipriano Castillo on August 25th, 1949.
Richard spent his childhood riding bikes, swimming at the beach, and enjoying being a Southern California Native.
Within his time, Richard did not always have an easy life. He had his fair share of adversities and personal struggles. Nonetheless, he was able to turn himself around & found his zest for life within his family.
Richard had two children, Richard Cipriano Castillo and Mariaelaina Felisita Castillo.
Richard was able to proudly watch his children excel in their personal and professional lives.
His Son Richard chose to enlist in the Navy, and was able to travel the world. Richard would be ecstatic with all of what his son would share with him, whereas it be a phone call or mail received from around the world.
Unfortunately, his son Richard’s success was short-lived. He preceded him in life at 21.
Richard was an intricate part in the success of his daughter. As his daughter worked a full-time job and was earning an education to become a nurse, Richard pitched in and ran the household, along with toting his grandchildren to school, baseball and soccer practice. Richard became well known as everyone’s “Grandpa.”
Any given day of the week, you could find him at Angel Food Donut Shop, on the “Fe line” as he liked to call it. He would be the talkative gentleman that EVERYONE knew.
He spent his mornings interacting with his friends, drinking coffee, and reminiscing about their yesteryears.
Richard spent the majority of his latter years surrounded by his immediate family. He enjoyed being a grandfather and great-grandfather. There was not anything he would not do to help them.
This gentleman had dined in some of the fanciest places, rubbed elbows with celebrities, held intellectual conversations with physicians that had become his friends, and enjoyed every bit of how his life evolved.
Richard loved gardening, Spring was his favorite season, shopping, old westerns, John Wayne, dancing, singing, walking his dogs along the river bed, riding his bike with his friends to Venice, or jumping in his El Camino for a quick road trip to anywhere. At the end of his life, he lived without any worries, other than what was on TV or what he was going to eat.
Richard lived 100 lives, good and bad. He was not embarrassed of who he was, or where he had been. He became a wealth of knowledge, and would have stories about any and everything. Never a dull conversationalist. As he would say, “you have to know a bit about a whole lot.”
Richard is preceded in life by his parents: Felisita and Cipriano Castillo, his brother Enrique “Henry” Castillo, his son Richard Cipriano Castillo, and his two dogs: Salem and Tecca.
He is survived by his daughter Elaina; his sister Mary; his grandchildren: Ricardo, Mercedes, Antonio, Richard, Cash, and Cesar; great-grandchildren: Liam, Lola, and Cesar II.