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COBOS -- Ruben - Internationally renowned scholar, linguist and folklorist Ruben Cobos, passed away peacefully at the age of 99 years and 11 days at his home in Albuquerque, New Mexico, surrounded by his family on Monday, November 22, 2010. He will be mourned by his family, friends and the thousands of students that he taught in his lifetime. Born in Coahuila, Mexico on November 11, 1911, he had recently celebrated his 99th birthday with his family including his wife of 56 years, Elvira Cobos; his daughter Dr. Renee Cobos and her husband Dr. Robert Rosenberg; grandchildren, Jordan and Sabrina Rosenberg from California; his son Marcelino Cobos; his nieces, Olga Anson and Henrietta Roudabush; and nephew Ventura Ruybal. He came to the United States at the young age of age after his father had died. His mother, Dolores "Lola" Medina de Cobos relocated the family to San Antonio, Texas, and finally to Albuquerque, New Mexico. His mother worked as a seamstress in a laundry and even though he was only a young lad of seven, she needed Ruben to help support the family. He provided food for his family by working before and after school with the milkman, the baker and the butcher. In exchange for sweeping the sidewalk in front of their stores, or helping deliver milk in the early hours of the morning before school, he would be given leftover bread, milk and meat for his family. He realized very early on that it would be only through education that he would be able to make a better life for himself and his family. He earned scholarships and worked as a cook in the cafeteria in order to attend Menaul High School in Albuquerque, New Mexico. When he graduated from Menaul, his mother had a job for him in the laundry where she was a seamstress, but Ruben had other plans. His dream was to go to college. When he told his mother of his dream, she answered "Con que dinero?" (with what money?). With no funds to his name, he approached Dr. Zimmerman, then the president of the University of New Mexico, and told him that he would do any type of work if he could only study at the University. Dr. Zimmerman was moved by his story and in exchange for full tuition, he cleaned the dorms, mowed grass, cleaned windows, and did whatever else was needed in order to earn his education. He graduated with honors from University of New Mexico with a Master's Degree in Spanish and taught in public schools in rural New Mexico. But that was only the beginning of what was to be a lifelong love of learning. He attended Stanford University in Palo Alto, California and received his Doctor of Letters from that institution. He taught at the University of New Mexico for more than forty years (1936-1976), and held teaching positions at Stanford University, the University of Nevada, Colorado College, and Highlands University. At the time of his death, he was a Professor Emeritus at both the University of New Mexico and Stanford University. His mastery of English, Spanish, French, Italian, Portuguese and German enabled him to serve in WWII as a consultant and translator in the US Office of Censorship after graduating from the Military Intelligence Training Center at Camp Ritchie, Maryland. Following his military involvement, he had a nascent career in Opera as a tenor and appeared in productions as a guest soloist with the Albuquerque Civic Opera, and the San Antonio Symphony Orchestra. As a teenager in Albuquerque, he was intrigued by and began documenting the regional variations of spoken Spanish. This was to become his work of a lifetime. Dr. Cobos began recording Indo-Hispanic folklore material in the early 1940s. With the co-operation of the common country folk: the villagers, farmers, sheepherders, the hard working people in the small towns throughout New Mexico and Southern Colorado and the assistance of his students, he gathered personal interviews, local ballads, games and songs, folktales, jokes, home remedies, recipes, proverbs, riddles and accounts of witchcraft from them. He also drew on items from literary works touching on New Mexico history, custom, and cultural history. His research spanned seventy-five years of direct contact with the Spanish spoken in the towns and villages of the upper Rio Grande and Southern Colorado. The Cobos Collection contains pieces of history which would have been lost forever, if not for his dedication. His numerous books and collections were the work of a lifetime of learning. He wrote, edited and co-edited hundreds of articles and several books. His articles have appeared in the New Mexico Historical Review, El Nuevo Mexicano, the New Mexico Folklore record, the Santa Fe New Mexican, and the Albuquerque Journal amongst many others. His most well known works, Refranes: Southwestern Spanish Proverbs (MNM Press) and A Dictionary of New Mexico and Southern Colorado Spanish, published by the Museum of New Mexico Press in Santa Fe have been continuously in use since their first publication in 1973 and 1983 respectively. They have become classic Spanish references, widely used in classrooms and by Spanish speakers in the Southwest and throughout the United States. The Ruben Cobos Collection of Spanish New Mexican Folklore is a sound archive containing over 2000 pieces, including ballads, poems, prayers, nursery rhymes, riddles, proverbs, stories, personal narratives, songs, instrumental music, and descriptions of social customs, ritual practices, and children's games. The recordings were made between 1944 and 1974 in Northern New Mexico and Southern Colorado. Music in the Ruben Cobos Collection of Spanish New Mexican Folklore, is archived in the Colorado College library and several other U.S. libraries including the Library of Congress in Washington, DC. His most recent areas of study and lecture materials regarded the hidden Jews who emigrated to New Mexico from Spain in the 16th century were a work in progress. He received multiple honors and awards in his lifetime including: The National Folk Festival Award, and election to the New Mexico Folklore Hall of Fame. He was one of 13 Hispanic Scholars that were honored by The Congressional Hispanic Caucus and the National Endowment of the Humanities at the US Capitol in 1979 amongst many others. Even at the age of 95, he could mesmerize a room of intellectuals with his wit, and knowledge as he did at a 2006 PEN dinner where he received an award for distinguished contribution to Languages and Literature of the Southwest. He lived a life of continuous learning and demonstrated to his children, grandchildren, nieces, nephews and his countless students that by achieving an education , we can help change the world in ways that have no limits. He is survived by his wife of 56 years, Elvira Garcia Cobos RN, BSN, MPH of Albuquerque; his daughter Renee Cobos MD, her husband Robert Rosenberg MD, and grandchildren Jordan Alexander Rosenberg, Sabrina Juliana Rosenberg of Fullerton California; his son Ruben Marcelino Cobos of Albuquerque; Evelia Yusuf, Irving Cobos, and Helene Chenier all of Albuquerque; and many nieces, nephews and grandchildren. Cremation has taken place. A memorial Rosary and Mass will be held Monday, December 20, 2010, 9:30 a.m., at Queen of Heaven Catholic Church, 5310 Claremont NE. Interment will take place at Santa Fe National Cemetery at 3:00 p.m. Honorary Pallbearers are Ruben Marcelino Cobos, Jordan Rosenberg, Sabrina Rosenberg, Irving Cobos, Robert Rosenberg, Ventura Ruybal, Mario Segura, and Evan Segura. In lieu of flowers, please send donations to the Ruben Cobos Memorial Scholarship fund, Menaul High School, 301 Menaul Blvd. NE, Albuquerque, NM. Please visit the online guestbook for Ruben Cobos at www.RememberTheirStory.com. Lovingly Pre-Planned at FRENCH 1111 University Blvd. NE (505) 843-6333
        Published on: Sun November 28, 2010