Juan Molina-Soto, 75, of Lake Elsinore, is taken to the San Jacinto Valley Cemetery in style with a horse-drawn hearse. "Dad loved to play the horses, and this was his last race," daughter Laura Molina says.
The late Juan Molina-Soto took an unusual and fitting final ride Wednesday to San Jacinto Valley Cemetery.
His casket was loaded aboard an ornate, red-and-white, horse-drawn hearse that led a funeral procession of headlight-beaming cars and trucks through San Jacinto neighborhoods and on to the cemetery along Santa Fe Avenue.
Jack Gerbl, owner of San Jacinto Valley Mortuary, said he only used a horse-drawn hearse one time before, but never in the San Jacinto Valley. Carol Griese, general manager of the cemetery, said she can't recall a carriage used to bring a casket to a gravesite in San Jacinto.
Laura Molina, Molina-Soto's daughter, had a ready answer when asked at the funeral why the family chose horse transportation. "Dad loved to play the horses and this was his last race," she said.
Her father was an Orange County resident who retired to Lake Elsinore four years ago after a career as a sales manager. He succumbed to lung cancer Jan. 21 at age 75.
He spent Sundays at horserace tracks or the off-site wagering facility at the Southern California Fair by Lake Perris. Relatives in San Jacinto suggested the San Jacinto Valley Cemetery as a pretty place for a burial. Linda Molina thought it was appropriate because her father was regular at Soboba Casino too.
The horse-pulled carriage cost only a little more than a conventional hearse. George Liblin, owner of G & F Carriages in Bloomington, handled the reins. He wore a bright red coat and a black top hat and slacks. He said he provides the carriage to about 15 services a year, normally meeting a motorized hearse at the entrance of the cemetery. The company's carriage assignments included the Bachelorette television show and the Rose Parade.
Molina-Soto's casket was loaded onto the carriage a little after 1 p.m. The carriage was pulled by a pair of gorgeous, white Percheron-Morgan mix horses. Grandsons Amed Molina of Fullerton and Alexes Molina of Lake Elsinore rode on the coach.
The procession moved smoothly. Liblin said he was impressed by people who saw the funeral procession roll by. As a sign of respect, as soon as they spotted the unusual hearse, they took off their hats.
Visit the Cemetery website at http://sjvcd.org
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