Coltonite Juan Rios Honored with Military Banner

The late Coltonite Juan Rios was recently honored with a military banner installation ceremony on June 16 by the city and his loved ones. According to his younger brother Jerry, Rios served a total of 21 years in the military. It was not long after graduating Colton High School in 1942 that Rios was drafted into the Army. Rios served for a brief time in the Army and then joined the civilian life once again, before he re-enlisted. It was during this second period of service that he soon became a member of the “Army Air Corp," which eventually became the US Air Force. Rios served in the Air Force for about the next 18 years of his life. While in the Air Force, he was a member of the Strategic Air Command (SAC) and flew all over the world on various missions. As a SAC member, his duties involved airborne radio communications, where he was basically a "radio operator." Throughout his 21 years of service, Rios was a veteran of World War II, Korea, and Vietnam. He retired from the Air Force as Master Sergeant in 1965. Returning to civilian life, Rios secured a job at McDonnell Douglas in Long Beach. He settled down in Norwalk, Calif., as he made it his home. In March of 2013, Rios passed quietly of natural causes at age 89. Rios was the oldest of his siblings. His parents Jose and Sara Rios of Colton had eight children. Rios and his late wife Zelma had two children: Michael Rios of Corona and Jonathan Rios of Norwalk. Jerry had six sisters, Rose Hernandez, Frances Martin, Virginia Espinosa, Antonia Fernandez, Josie Oliveros and Nellie Rios, and one brother, Jerry Rios. Many family members and friends made it out to Rios's military banner installation ceremony as they all came together to honor their loved one and memorialize his successful life. “He’s the oldest and we are all very proud of him,” brother Jerry shared. “We were happy to put his banner up amongst Colton’s best… We thank everyone who was involved in making this happen.”