Trust Fund Set Up for Family in Need

Many might wonder what Jaime Rios could have to be thankful for this holiday season.

On Monday, his wife, Sylvia, died as a result of a Nov. 8 auto accident. Just before his wife’s death, Rios received a call from the county tax assessor’s office informing him that he could lose the Pacoima house where he lives with his eight children, ages 2 to 18, unless he pays a portion of the back taxes by the end of December.

This week, Sylvia’s younger sister, Esmeralda Mariscal of Pacoima, established a trust fund for the family at a Pacoima bank. Mariscal wants any money collected to be used to help the family, especially to pay for her sister’s funeral and buy clothes for her six nieces and two nephews.

Mariscal said she and her husband, Lupe, are raising a large family of their own on small paychecks and have little extra to share.

“The last time I checked, there was maybe $50 in [the trust fund],” Esmeralda said. “The amount is not important. What’s important is to give them a place to live, to keep the house and buy the things the children need.”

Jaime Rios said he owes $13,000 in back taxes on his home and must pay roughly $1,400 by year’s end, or lose the house in a government auction. He said his financial problems started three years ago when he quit his job as a ride mechanic at a theme park to keep a closer eye on his oldest daughter. She was spending more time on the streets, he said, and would not even come home some nights.

“It kept us up,” he said. “We couldn’t sleep we were so worried about her. How could I go to work when I know my daughter is somewhere she shouldn’t be?”

He said he hasn’t been able to find work since.

With the help of his sister-in-law and the good will of people in the community who have donated things like the turkey the family had on Thanksgiving, Rios hopes he and his children will pull through.

“My children are like my little flowers and this home is our garden,” he said. “We’ve already had too much rain, things have to get better.”

The S. Rios Trust Fund has been established at Glendale Federal Bank, 13657 Van Nuys Blvd., Pacoima. For information, call (818) 897-0996.