Elena Rubio
July 18, 1927-August 4, 2025
Elena (Carrion) Rubio, beloved mother, grandmother, and great-grandmother, passed away on August 4, 2025.
She was preceded in death by her beloved brother, Pablo, and her sisters, Pilar, Rosa, and Elisa.
She was born in Santa Cruz del Norte, Cuba, the daughter of a devoted Methodist minister who worked closely with U.S. missionaries in Cuba. With the help of one of those missionaries, she earned a scholarship to attend college in the United States, becoming the first member of her family to do so and making the courageous journey entirely on her own. Arriving with little English, she studied tirelessly with a Spanish-English dictionary alongside her textbooks, ultimately graduating with a bachelor’s degree from Asbury College in Wilmore, KY.
After college, she returned to Cuba, where she married Robert Rubio, who had also been called to serve as a Methodist minister. Together, they decided to build their life in the United States, working any job they could find until the Methodist Church sent them to Falfurrias, Texas, to build a congregation from scratch in a Mexican-American community.
Their ministry took them to many places—Falfurrias, TX; Donna, TX; Lubbock, TX; Raton, NM; Albuquerque, NM; Wymore, NE; and Carter Lake, IA—where they touched countless lives through service and compassion. While in Wymore, she was invited by the school district to teach Spanish, which led her to attend the University of Nebraska–Lincoln to earn her teaching degree. In Omaha, she continued sharing her love of language and culture while teaching Spanish at Brownell-Talbot School and later Westside Middle School.
A devoted matriarch, she was the proud mother of Rob and Rick Rubio; the cherished grandmother of Stuart (Megan), Jamie, David, and Zoe Rubio, Kristina Mueller(Jonathan), and Klaus Backland; and the adoring great-grandmother of Ashton, Ethan, and Evan Rubio, and Anderson Mueller. She loved her family deeply, and her life was a living example of strength, compassion, loyalty, and love. She inspired generations, helping many of her family members become U.S. citizens and forever changing the course of her family’s future.
She took great pride in both her Cuban heritage and her American citizenship, embodying the values of hard work, perseverance, and service. Her confidence, warmth, and unwavering dedication to her family and community will continue to be felt for years to come.
Her family finds comfort in knowing that her remarkable life and legacy will live on in the countless people she inspired and loved.
FUNERAL SERVICE: Tuesday, August 19, 2025, 11:00 AM at Fogelstrom Chapel at Immanuel Village, 6757 Newport Ave, Omaha, NE.
INTERMENT: Evergreen Cemetery
To view a live broadcast of the service, please visit www.heafeyheafey.com and click the “Live Cast” button at the top of the home page.
Heafey-Hoffmann-Dworak-Cutler, West Center Chapel, 7805 West Center Road, Omaha, Ne 68124. (402)-391-3900. www.heafeyheafey.com
4 Comments
Tìa Elena, our hearts are grieving at your passing. You took me into your home when I fled Cuba as a thirteen year old leaving my parents and sister behind. We will always keep you in our hearts and have comfort in knowing that you are in God’s hands with your parents, my mother, and your other sisters and brother. Blessings to the entire family.
We knew Elena from Rockbrook United Methodist Church. We visited with her on many occasions and loved her compassionate demeanor. We could tell she had a full and varied life and we loved hearing about it. We are sure she will be missed by many. Condolences to the family.
We knew Elena from Rockbrook United Methodist Church. We visited with her on many occasions and loved hearing about her varied and full life. She was a compassionate, caring person. We are sure she will be missed by many. Condolences to the family.
I had Señora Rubio as my Spanish teacher at Arbor Heights Junior High( Now Westside Middle School) for 7th and 8th grade. I enjoyed her classes even if there was a few rowdy boys in there that would test her limits from time to time but she handled them well.
My deepest sympathy to all of the family,
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