Joe Nick Payan

Nick 'The Boss' Payan...The man, the myth the legend was born on November 5, 1938 to the lovely Joe and Emma Payan in Ignacio, Colorado. Nick had 8 wonderfully pleasant siblings that always loved to share a kind word, Veva, Angela, Berlinda, Betty, Louis, Delphine, Jim and Frank. The Payan family eventually moved to Ogden, Utah and there Nick entered the Navy.



Trusted by all, envied by most, the Boss passed away on January 20, 2017, and he never made a mistake in his life.

Nick loved apple pie and a good steak so rare a good doctor could bring it back to life. In his youth he was known to enjoy a cold one from time to timemaybe some Chivas or vodka, but thats neither here nor there. He enjoyed boating, telling it how it is, fast cars, and whale watching (not necessarily in that order). When he wasnt at work he would be riding in his boats, Cadillacs, Corvettes or on his Harley heading to one of eleven Laughlin Harley runs. He liked to catch an episode of Caliente, maybe Soul Train, and dont tellbut occasionally General Hospital.



Nick was a master craftsman (50 year Carpenter Union Member), a Navy Veteran and bridge builder. He was a jack of all trades and a master of most, but above all he was a hard working family man. He grooved to the sounds of Cher, Texas Tornados, Vicente Fernandez, Jose Alfredo Jimenez, Ana Gabriel, a little Willie, some Dolly and Xscape.



He met the lady of his dreams, Rosalie The Warden Nevarez, in 1964 and made her his wife on June 11, 1966, at Assumption Catholic Church in East Los Angeles, California. Together, they raised five wonderful daughters. Their first daughter, Debbie The oldest was born in 1967 in Downey, CA and made The Boss change his ways when, as a baby, she decided to have one of his cigarettes for lunch, he never smoked again. Next, the little boys that werent were: Julie The Superintendent born in 1969 and Michelle The easy one in 1970, in Long Beach, CA. In a last ditch effort to have that little boy, came The baby girl Valarie, born in 1973 in Alhambra, CA. When it came to construction, Nick knew it all. Over the years he employed a fair share of the Family and friends. He and the lady went where his work took him, raising those little angels everywhere from Alhambra to Needles, where he built the Needles Bridge while fighting off the local Indians, bribing them with cases of beer. The Payans then settled in Whittier in 1980, saving the best for last, Lizzy the boy came to them in 1983, and she and her Daddy were inseparable.



The girls attended catholic school and grew up in Spyglass where pool parties and family dinners were the norm. The Boss continued to be the bad ass that he was, prompting elementary school friends to question if he had mafia ties and sending suitors running by offering to show them his gun collection, or at least threaten it.



Later, the girls shaped up and shipped out, so The Boss and The Warden headed to the beach, living the good life. First in Long Beach, partying at the Grand Prix and celebrating at the Seal Beach Yacht Club, then on to Huntington. Nick finally got his boy and became Pa when the first grandson, Joseph, was born in 2001, followed by six more boys, Morgan, Logan, Nicolas, Nolan, Jon and Austin. However, he hadnt escaped the curse of the baby girl because he also had 3 granddaughters: Lauren, Marissa, and Kylie.



Nick and Rose eventually settled in Chino Hills where he once fought off an armed robber and refused to surrender his car. There, The Boss continued to be the wonderful, not grumpy, ever so kind husband, Pa, and Daddy. Fixing anything, and continuing to rescue his angels any time they needed it, he demonstrated how to be a strong, stubborn, wonderful man to the future generations of the Payan name.



Thats it, the end. You know, like 2x2=4? I hope you enjoyed this obituary if you didntnot my problem, it is what it is!



Nick is survived by his wife, Rosalie; children, Debbie (Ruben) Torres, Julie (Don) Hall, Michelle (Steve) Kim, Valarie (Erik) Gamm, and Elizabeth Payan; ten grandchildren; two sisters, Veva Lopez and Angela Eldredge, and two brothers, Jim Payan, and Frank Payan.



Viewing will take place from 10:00-10:50am on Wednesday, February 1, 2017, at St. Hilary Church, 5465 Citronell Ave, Pico Rivera, California, with Mass being celebrated at 11:00am. A reception will be held at the church following Mass. A Graveside Service with Military Honors will be held at 10:00am the next day, Thursday, February 2, 2017, at Riverside National Cemetery, 22495 Van Buren Blvd., Riverside, California.