Jenni Rivera Laid To Rest On New Year's Eve

Images: Univision

The Rivera family on Monday finally held their private funeral service for Jenni Rivera.

By H. Nelson Goodson

January 2, 2013

Long Beach, California - On Monday, the Rivera family buried the remains of the late Jenni Rivera at the All Souls Cemetery on New Year's Eve without the media or public present. The Rivera family held a private service and buried the remains of Jenni Rivera, 43, and then held a procession by walking, dancing, singing and celebrating the death of Jenni as she requested.

Friends, musicians from the Jenni Rivera band and the Rivera family then celebrated her life at her mother's family home in remembrance of La Diva de la Banda, Jenni Rivera.

The public will now be allowed to pay their last respects at the cemetery, according to family members.

Rivera lost her life on December 10th shortly after departing from Monterrey on a private Learjet 25. Ten minutes into the Learjet flight around 3:15 a.m., the jet lost control at 28,000 feet and plunged at a speed of 600 miles per hour crashing into the side of a mountain in a ranch in Iturbe, Nuevo León.

Rivera, four of her companions and two pilots lost their lives when the Learjet exploded and their bodies disintegrated on impact. Rivera had performed on Saturday night at the Monterrey Arena in front of 16,000 fans and was headed to Toluca when the plane that she and her attorney, representative and several make-up/manicure aides were traveling in disappeared 10 minutes after taking off from Monterrey and crashed.

Rivera (Jenny Dolores Rivera Saavedra) including both pilots, Miguel Pérez and Alejandro Torres and four other passengers Alberto Rivera Saavedra, Mario Macias, Jacob Llenares and Gerardo N. were killed in the crash.

Rivera is a three time Latin Grammy Award nominee who is known for her banda and norteña music genres. Rivera had just signed a deal with ABC to star in a comedy sitcom called "Jenni". She also became the first Latina artist to host her own reality show and had launched a clothing and cosmetics line.

Rivera is survived by her five children, (three fathered by Marín), Jacqueline Marín Rivera, 23, Janney "Chiquis" Marín Rivera, 27, and Michael Marín Rivera, 21, (two fathered by López) Jenicka López Rivera, 15, and Johnny López Rivera, 11, including both her parents (Pedro Rivera and Rosa Saavedra) and siblings, Pedro, Gustavo, Lupillo, Juan and Rosie.

Lupillo is a popular banda singer and Juan is also a singer.