Gabina Lira

Gabina Zuniga de Lira-

Funeral services to celebrate the life of Gabina Zuñiga de Lira, 85, of Port Byron, will be held 10:30 am Thursday, August 4, 2022, at Halligan-McCabe-DeVries Funeral Home, Davenport. Burial will take place at Riverside Cemetery, Moline.  Visitation will be Wednesday, August 3^rd from 4-7 pm at the funeral home, with a rosary recited at 3:30 pm. Memorials may be made to the American Cancer Society.

Our beloved mother, Gabina Zuñiga de Lira, went to her heavenly home on July 31, 2022.  Born, the youngest of 11 children, on February 19, 1937, in Colombia, Nuevo Leon, Mexico to parents, Wenceslao Zuñiga and Maria Ramos de Zuñiga.  She was raised on her family’s ranch, “La Mariposa,” and married her husband of 50 years, Fidencio Lira, on April 13, 1954, in Nuevo Laredo, Tamaulipas, Mexico.  After immigrating to the United States in 1954, she and her husband raised 10 children in the Quad Cities’ area.  

She would begin working to help support her family after her youngest was old enough to attend school and was employed at both Fresh Pak Candy Co. and Brach’s Candy Co. as a machine operator.  Although she had no formal education, her intellectual curiosity guided her to study English in EL classes, make clothing patterns, embroider, and crochet. An avid gardener, she loved roses and as a testament to the affection between her and her husband, his gifts to her were rose bushes for which he would labor to break ground for her, so she could plant her beloved rose bushes.  

In retirement, she and her husband returned to “La Mariposa” to spend quiet days, raising a small herd of cattle. She loved the ranch and the life it gave her and her husband in later years.

A woman of great abilities and strong resilience with an unwavering faith in the Lord and a great love for her children, she was a prayer warrior, often praying the rosary as her spiritual weapon of choice.  She brought her children to Spanish mass, providing the foundation for their belief in the Lord.

A beautiful soul, her warm smile and quiet demeanor belied her indomitable strength. She was the bond that brought her children together, having taught them to support each other, even in their moments of grief. In her last moments, she was surrounded by her children, who held her and kissed her as she made her way home to the Lord.

She is survived by her children Fidencio Lira Jr., Maria Lira, Samuel Lira, Roberto (Nancy) Lira, Eduardo (Terry) Lira, Sara (Jim) Wynes, David (Tracy) Lira, Isabel (Mike) Lira, Helena Lira, and Silvia (Pedro) Valladares, 17 grandchildren, and 15 great-grandchildren.  She was preceded in death by her husband, Fidencio, and 10 siblings. We love you, Mom. We are honored and thankful that you were our mother. We will look after one another, just as you taught us. Te queremos mamá. Nos sentimos honrados y agradecidos de que fuistes nuestra madre. Nos cuidaremos unos a otros, tal como nos enseñaste.