WORCESTER-Andres Ortiz Diaz, 67, of Worcester, died Wednesday, March 25th in UMass Memorial Hospital. He leaves two daughters, Holly T. Ricard and her husband John J. Ricard, Jr. of Oxford and Angela L. Diaz of Worcester; his stepdaughter, Melissa A. Perez of Worcester; eleven siblings, Carmen, Simona, Benedicto, Mercedes, Fransisco, Fernando, Maria S., Jose M., Alfonso, Rene and Eva Diaz Ortiz, all of Puerto Rico; six grandchildren Jenniffer Lee-Eve Rivera Falkowski and her husband Artur of Worcester, Matthew Thomas Ricard, Ricardo Antonio Rivera and Teresa Maria Rivera, all of Oxford, and Amaya and Johnny Thompson of Worcester; his ex-wives, Barbara J. Lavallee of Oxford and Linda A. (Hamm) Diaz of Worcester; and several nephews, nieces, aunts and uncles. Three siblings, Isabel, Margarita and Gerard Diaz Ortiz predeceased him.
Mr. Diaz was born in San Lorenzo, Puerto Rico, the son of Natalio Diaz Flores and Leonor Ortiz Diaz, and relocated to the United States in 1960 at the age of 18. Mr. Diaz then lived on a farm in New Jersey and later relocated to Southbridge before settling in Worcester. He was a steel worker for various companies, including HH Brown Shoe, Rexnord Ball and Chain and most recently, Komtec, until he became disabled in the early 1990’s. Mr. Diaz enjoyed attending Mass, doing so at various Catholic churches in Worcester and was a firm believer in tithing and offerings to the area churches, Worcester Diocese, Channel 13 religious programs as well as several other charities. He loved scratching lottery tickets, was an avid walker, taking daily trips to Elm Park when possible, was a great cook and enjoyed playing his guitar, building model cars, birds and plants and had a love for nature. Mr. Diaz was very loving, generous and was a great advice giver.
The funeral is Monday, March 30th from O’CONNOR BROTHERS FUNERAL HOME, 592 Park Avenue with a Mass at 10:00 AM in St. Peter’s Church, 931 Main Street. Burial will be at a later date. Calling hours are Sunday, March 29th from 4:00 until 8:00 PM in the funeral home.