Laura Elidia Melgar

Laura was born in San Rafael Las Flores, Guatemala on May 18, 1938, to Gilberto and Norbertina Rodriquez.

She had six siblings; she is survived by three of them.

In 1958, she married Rafael Melgar. They had four children (Sergio, Byron, Mario and Ingrid) during their marriage.

In 1965, Laura immigrated to California. Subsequently, she opened her own beauty salon “Laura’s” in Culver City. In 1973, she purchased a home and moved her family to Thousand Oaks. She was widowed in 1974. She opened a new salon in Newbury Park: “Silhouette for Hairstyling” that same year, operating it until she retired in 2003. In addition, she opened a Latin American food market in Thousand Oaks in 1991, where she would meet Rene Suarez. They would marry in 1993 and were together until his passing in November of 2023.

Laura passed away peacefully on November 15, surrounded by her three sons, her daughter, her stepdaughter (Ana) and her son-in-law (David).

She is also survived by her eight grandchildren and two great grandchildren who adore her and always called her “Mom”.

Laura enjoyed spending time with her family. She loved cooking specially making tamales for Christmas and was a prolific gardener. She traveled widely visiting the Vatican and the Holy Land. She also visited many countries including China, Russia and Argentina.