Francisco "Frank" Gutierrez passed away peacefully on January 16, 2026 in Fresno, California at the age of 97. He was born on March 3, 1928 to Maria Sosa and Amado Gutierrez in Zacapu, Michoacan, Mexico.

After his father passed, when Frank was very young, he was raised by his mother and stepfather- Jesus Mendoza. Frank had fond memories of his life in Mexico. He loved walking to church with his grandfather, Benino Sosa and would tell stories of how his Aunt Christina helped raise him.

Frank lived and worked in Mexico until early adulthood. There, he met the love of his life, Aurora Lopez; his neighbor's sister who was visiting from California. Aurora, a mother of four at that time, went back to California and he followed her. At 21 years old, Frank left Mexico to begin his life with his future wife, her children and never looked back.

Frank and Aurora were married on August 15, 1949. When he married her, he also embraced the role of stepfather to her four children and raised them as his own: Terry, Lorraine, Joey, and Lolie. Together, they went on to have five more children together: Maria, Norma, Frank Jr., Dina, and Sandy.

After settling in Selma, California, Frank began working at the Mulligans Ranch alongside family members and later joined Bennett and Bennett, installing and repairing irrigation pipes. He was very proud of his work there and often joked about preferring concrete pipes over "that plastic stuff".  He retired at the age of 62, after working there for over 40 years, so he could care for his wife Aurora. He lovingly cared for her until her
passing on October 23, 2001.

Frank was preceded in death by his wife of 52 years, Aurora Lopez Gutierrez, his parents, three brothers- Antonio, Jose, Luis, one sister- Luz Maria and great- granddaughter Olivia. Frank is survived by his youngest brother, Salvador "Chava" Mendoza, his children, 24 grandchildren, and 40+ great-grandchildren.

Frank loved being outdoors- fishing, working in the yard, sitting on the porch, or walking his beloved dog, Olympia. Many in Selma saw Frank and Olympia take their daily walk from his house to the cemetery, to visit his wife after she passed. When he wasn't
outside, he was watching a good western, soccer "Go Mexico!!", baseball "Go Dodgers!!", or boxing "Go Julio Cesar Chavez! Go Canelo!". Abuelo house was the gathering place for holidays and family celebrations, where everyone knew they would have a lot of laughs, leave full and have a great time. Aurora taught him to cook throughout the years and he became famous for his menudo, chile verde and salsa.

Abuelo was dearly loved by his family and will be greatly missed by all.  He built a legacy that will last on for generations to come. As he always said when his guests would leave his house, "Thank you for coming, and thank you for going".