Richard Raymond Cervantez

Richard Raymond Cervantez (born September 24, 1968) passed away unexpectedly on Friday, August 23, 2024. Born and raised in Santa Barbara, he attended Notre Dame Elementary School, Bishop Garcia Diego High School, and Santa Barbara City College. Richard had a passion for sports, both as a teammate and as the head coach for the YFL SB Saints Freshman division, age group 10-11 year olds. He mentored his young players on and off the field, and was well loved by his teams past and present. At the time of his passing, Richard worked as a bus driver for Santa Barbara MTD for over 20 years. He maintained strong friendships with coworkers and bus riders alike. Prior to establishing himself at MTD, Richard had many jobs but loved the social aspect of bartending and being a former manager at Kaisers. Richard, known as Uncle Rich by many, was blessed with a large, loving family including aunts, uncles, and cousins. He extended great effort in supporting his cousins’ many activities, attending sporting events, birthdays, graduations, and more. He and his brother Robert were raised by their loving mother Martha, to whom Richard was deeply dedicated, and who supported them in all of their endeavors (with a particular love for the Bishop sporting events). He cherished and shared a love of cars with his father Daniel, who gave Richard his first car, a 1964 Chevy Malibu. In December 2021 at Harry’s, wearing a Santa Claus hat peppered with blinking Christmas lights, Richard met the love of his life, Judi Sotelo. They cherished each other’s company, often vacationing and attending comedy shows and concerts. But what he cherished the most was the time they spent at home together. He took her family as his own with unconditional love and support. Richard was the heart of a strong and loving community, including several best friends from first grade and adding many more along the way. He gathered them together at Harry's once a month for dinner and drinks. Richard could not walk down the street without running into a friend or relative and was profoundly loved by all. Words that describe Richard are: genuine, loyal, trustworthy, honest, kind, patient to a fault, and compassionate with a wickedly dry sense of humor. His infectious laugh will be deeply missed by all. Richard is survived by his mother Martha; father Daniel; brother Robert (DeeAnn); nephews Garret, Dominic (McKinzie), Marcus; and niece Moraya. He is preceded in death by his niece Tahi. Services to honor Richard will be held at Welch-Ryce-Haider Santa Barbara on Friday, August 30 with a rosary at 5 PM and a viewing to follow until 8 PM. His funeral service will be held at 10 AM on Saturday, August 31 at Holy Cross Church. A celebration of life will be held on Sunday, September 1 at Bishop Garcia Diego High School at 1 PM. “In lieu of flowers, a donation for burial expenses can be made to @Martha-Cervantez-SB on Venmo. Donations to the Santa Barbara YFL are also welcome.”

Richard Raymond Cervantez

September 24, 1968 - August 23, 2024