She was one of three daughters - Emma, Enriqueta, and herself - of John Sullivan, an American engineer who worked in railroad construction, and his wife, María Coya, who was originally from Cienfuegos, Cuba.

The couple had three more daughters (who were Aida Sullivan's stepsisters): María Amparo, Elvira and Alma Julia Viderique Coya.

[3][4] In 1933, concerned about the country's high infant mortality rate, Sullivan wrote Libro para la madre mexicana (Book For The Mexican Mother), in which she urged women to adopt new hygienic and nutritional measures to improve the quality of life for their children.

Aida Sullivan, as Sonora's first lady, established the Fundación Esposos Rodríguez, to grant scholarships to low-income students.

In 1964, Sullivan's and Rodriguez's eldest son, Juan Abelardo, and their daughter-in-law, Janine Ratliff died in a plane crash.