Rene Ortiz

Rene Ortiz passed away on June 18, 2023. He is survived by his four children, Johnine, Heidi, Sally and Jeff; seven grandchildren, Brandi, Ryan , Chris , Jordan, Tyffanie, Jake and Elyse; and two great grandchildren, Cameron and Aurora, as well as his brother, John Ortiz. Rene was born March 9th, 1945 to John and Tillie Ortiz in Los Angeles, CA and was the youngest of nine children. Rene graduated from El Rancho High School in Pico Rivera in 1963 where he met the love of his life, Arlene at 17 years old. Rene joined the Navy in 1965 where he trained as an aviation structural mechanic. Arlene and Rene were married at St. Mariana De Paredes church in Pico Rivera in 1966 and were stationed in Kingsville Texas where they had their first daughter, Johnine. Upon honorable discharge from the Navy, they moved back to Pico Rivera, and had their next two daughters, Heidi and Sally. They settled in Brea to raise their family and had their son, Jeff. In 1971, Rene joined the Los Angeles City Fire Department as a firefighter and was soon promoted to Engineer in 1977. In 1979 he transferred to Fire Station 14 in South Central LA where he found his home away from home. For the next 29 years, he worked with his second family and brothers of Shift B and remained there until his retirement in 2007. Aside from his work with the fire department, Rene was a general contractor, a skilled craftsman in the trades of masonry, tile, carpentry and plumbing. Rene enjoyed many hobbies and activities throughout his life, including golf, Angels baseball and USC football. He was an avid gambler whether at home with family, his friends at Elks or in Vegas. He never passed on having a cigar and a bourbon with his buddies. He also spent quite of time traveling with Arlene on cruises and abroad. Rene’s joined the Elks Lodge in Fullerton in 2008. He was very involved in the Elks lodge where he earned Elk of the month in 2011 and Elk of the year in 2011-2012. He and Arlene met lifelong friends and made great memories. Family was very important to Rene. Rene and Arlene were married for 57 years and were devoted to each other, their 4 children and 7 grandkids and spent every holiday together and many vacations in Lake Tahoe and Yosemite. When Rene became Papa, he loved it and found it important to teach each of his grandkids skills, values, morals and of course, poker. They all had a very individual great relationship with their Papa. Rene was a devout catholic making St Angela Merici in Brea his home parish for almost 50 years. Rene was there with his sweetheart when she passed away in January 2023. He loved life and lived life to the fullest. Our beloved parents were both born in 1945 and both passed away in 2023. He will be missed by many. Love you Dad, Papa

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Rene Ortiz

March 9, 1945 - June 18, 2023