Florencio "Lencho" Genera Puentes passed away peacefully on Saturday evening, December 19, 2020 surrounded by his family. Lencho was born in Santa Barbara, Chihuahua, Mexico on November 7, 1924 to Margarita and Concepción Puentes. He immigrated to Silvis in 1954 where he met the woman (Beatrice Sandoval) at a dance, whom he would celebrate 66 years of marriage and together build a legacy. He was proud of their 7 children: Adrian (Gabriela), Gloria, Luis (Theresa), Georgina "Gena", Beatrice "Pebbles", Jacqueline (Daniel Pesek) and Tricia (Tony Serna); 14 grandchildren … Mariana (Adrian), Maya and Ariana (Gloria), Miguel, Analicia, Adrian (Luis), Guillermo and Emilio (Pebbles), Joshua, Elijah and Aaron (Jacqueline) and Julian, Isabella and Benjamin (Tricia) and 11 great-grandchildren. Lencho (and Bea) raised their children to know the importance of family, faith, education, and hard work. Lencho was a dedicated and hard-working man working 2 jobs most of his life but always willing to help his friends and family with any project that needed his talents. He retired from John Deere Harvester Works in 1989 after dedicating 27 years as a laborer. He was so proud to be a retiree of Deere that when the Deere Commons opened, he volunteered and loved meeting new people and talking about Deere equipment. He leaves his family all with such beautiful memories including a trip to Mexico with his 7 children and their children to share his journey as he wanted us to always be proud of our Mexican roots and know his story. He loved to be active, walking 4 miles nearly every day for many many years. He also loved sports, especially Boxing, Baseball and basketball. His favorite teams were the St. Louis Cardinals and the Boston Celtics. And did he and Bea, love to dance … many may recall watching them glide across the dance floor at many of dances over the years! He LOVED the sun and those who would drive by their home (over the last 10 years) could catch him sitting outside in his chair waving at everyone who drove by. He is predeceased by his parents, 3 brothers and 3 sisters.  It saddens the family, but the unfortunate reality of COVID is that the visitation will be for family only on Wednesday, Dec 23rd at Van Hoe Funeral Home. A private mass and burial is scheduled at 1 pm that afternoon at Our Lady of Guadalupe Church and St. Mary's Cemetery. The service will be live-streamed at https://www.facebook.com/VanHoeFuneralHome Prayers and positive thoughts are welcomed and appreciated by the family. Online condolences may be left for the family at www.vanhoe.com

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