Un Elogio Para Mi Papá (Parte 1 de 4)

Gracias por la increíble efusión de amor y amabilidad durante este momento tan difícil.

El mundo ha perdido a un hombre extraordinario. Mi mamá perdió a su amado esposo de casi 61 años. Mis hermanos y yo perdimos a un padre devoto. Nuestros cónyuges perdieron a un suegro maravilloso que los amaba como a sus propios hijos. Mis hijos y mis sobrinos perdieron a un abuelo cariñoso. Mis tías y tíos perdieron a un hermano increíble. Mis primos perdieron a un tío increíble.

Mi padre haría cualquier cosa por su familia. En 1963 pidió dinero prestado, compró un boleto de avión, dejó todo lo que conocía en la República Dominicana y se mudó a los Estados Unidos. El tenía una esposa y dos hijos en ese momento. No podía traerlos con él, así que vino solo. No tenía educación universitaria; no hablaba el idioma y no conocía la cultura. Pero tenía una ética de trabajo increíble y estaba decidido a conseguir un trabajo, reunir a su familia y brindarles una vida mejor.

Tomó esa ética de trabajo y esa determinación y se dedicó a su familia. Encontró el trabajo que necesitaba para construir una vida mejor para nosotros y brindó amor y apoyo en el camino. Mis hermanos, mi hermana y yo fuimos a la universidad, somos dueños de nuestras propias casas, tenemos profesiones y sobresalimos en nuestras carreras.

Tenemos el privilegio de disfrutar la vida que vivimos debido a los sacrificios y el ezfuerzo que hicieron mis padres, y la maravillosa vida que nos brindaron.


Un Elogio Para Mi Papá (Part 2 de 4)

En los últimos días, he escuchado tantas historias diferentes sobre mi padre y todas terminaron de la misma manera. El era un hombre maravilloso; era un padre maravilloso; era un esposo maravilloso. Todos estuvieron de acuerdo.

Incluso los vecinos de mis padres han comentado lo maravilloso que era mi padre. Pasaron por la casa de mis padres y lloraron con nosotros.  Es una cosa que su familia comparta su pérdida y sienta su dolor. Es otra cosa muy distinta que un vecino venga a su casa, llore con uno y sienta su pérdida.

Mi papá estableció el estándar de lo que debería ser un esposo, un padre y un abuelo. Pero no podemos hablar de mi papá sin hablar tambien de mi mamá.  Mis padres establecieron el estándar de lo que debería ser un matrimonio feliz, y estoy convencida de que mis hermanos, mi hermana y yo tenemos matrimonios felices por eso.

Gracias a mi papá, mis hermanos tuvieron un ejemplo de como ser buenos padres y esposos; y mi hermana y yo supimos qué buscar en un esposo y futuro padre de nuestros hijos.

Gracias a mi mamá, mi hermana y yo sabíamos el tipo de esposas que deberíamos ser y como ser buenas madres; y mis hermanos sabían lo que debían buscar en una esposa y futura madre de sus hijos.


Un Elogio Para Mi Papá (Parte 3 de 4)

Mi padre fue amable. Fue generoso. Fue bondadoso. Fue amado.

Lo que me hace más feliz es que papi sabía cuánto lo amaban.

Nosotros, como seres humanos, tenemos la mala costumbre de no expresar a nuestros seres queridos exactamente cuánto los amamos. Creemos que siempre habrá tiempo para esas cosas.

Pero luego, no encontramos el tiempo para hacerlo. En cambio, terminamos expresando esas emociones cuando nos reunimos para un funeral y es demasiado tarde.

Por eso estoy tan increíblemente agradecida de haber podido reunirnos y celebrar el 80 cumpleaños de papi.  En ese entonces el vio cuánto lo amaban. Vio a hermanos, hermanas, sobrinas, sobrinos y amigos viajar a Nueva York, de todo el país, solo para celebrar con él y hacerle saber cuánto lo amaban.

Papi me comentó, más de una vez, lo conmovido que estaba por todos los mensajes, regalos y tarjetas que recibió y por el hecho de que tanta personas vinieron a celebrarlo. Gracias por ayudarnos a darle ese regalo a mi padre. Por hacerle saber, de verdad, cuánto fue amado y por ayudarnos a expresarle eso mientras aún estaba vivo.


Un Elogio Para Mi Papa ( Parte 4 de 4)

Y ahora un mensaje para mi mamá: Mami, papi te amaba y te apreciaba. Él te valoraba. Reconoció cuánto lo amabas y el gran esfuerzo que siempre hacías por él y por nuestra familia, especialmente cuando se enfermó.

Sabía que la vida feliz que vivió nuestra familia habría sido imposible sin ti. Los recuerdos que tenemos con papi y el amor familiar que compartimos hubieran sido imposibles sin ti.

Sé que estás destrozada y tienes el alma adolorida, pero no estás sola. Tu familia esta aqui. Tiene tus hijos y sus cónyuges, tus nietos, tus hermanos y hermanas, los hermanos y hermanas de papi, tus sobrinas y sobrinos, y nuestros primos. Y no podemos olvidarnos de nuestros amigos que son parte de nuestra familia extendida. Aquellos con quien tomamos vacaciones todos los años y compartimos cada Navidad. Todos todavía te necesitamos. Todavía quedan celebraciones: cumpleaños, graduaciones, bodas, tal vez incluso bisnietos.

No estás sola. Jamás estarás sola. Ten fuerza en saber que estamos aquí contigo y, aunque no esté presente en la vida, papi siempre estará con nosotros. Cuando el te haga falta solo tienes que mirar a la hermosa familia que construyeron juntos.

Ojalá tuviera una copa para levantar ahora mismo en honor a mi papá y brindar por su memoria.

Como no la tengo, les voy a pedir a todos ustedes que lo hagan. La próxima vez que estén tomando una copa y celebrando con sus seres queridos, díganles que los aman. Luego, piensen en mi papá y brindan por él.  Continuen su legado de bondad, compasión y generosidad y el seguirá siendo eternamente feliz. 





A Eulogy For My Father (Part 1 of 4)

Thank you  for the amazing outpouring of love and kindness during this incredibly difficult time.

The world has lost an extraordinary man. My mother lost her loving husband of almost 61 years. My siblings and I lost a devoted father. Our spouses lost a wonderful father-in-law who loved them like his own children. My children and my nephews lost a doting grandfather.  My aunts and uncles lost an incredible brother. My cousins lost an amazing uncle.

My father would do anything for his family. In 1963 he borrowed money, bought a plane ticket, left everything he had known in the Dominican Republic and moved to the United States. He had a wife and two children at the time.  He couldn’t bring them with him so he came alone.  He didn’t have a college education; he didn’t speak the language and he didn’t know the culture.  But he had an incredible work ethic and he was determined to get job, re-unite his family and provide a better life for them.

He took that work ethic and that determination, and devoted himself to his family.  He found the job that he needed to build a better life for us and provided love and support along the way.  My siblings and I all went to college, we own our own homes, we have professions and we excel at our careers.

We have the privilege of enjoying the lives we lead because of the sacrifices my parents made and the wonderful life that they provided.


A Eulogy For My Father (Part 2 of 4)

In the past few days, I have heard so many different stories about my father and they all ended the same way.   He was a wonderful man; he was wonderful father; he was a wonderful husband. Everyone agreed.  

Even my parents’ neighbors have commented on what a wonderful man my father was.  They stopped by my parents’ home and cried with us.  It’s one thing to have your family share in your loss and feel your pain.  It’s quite another thing to have a neighbor come to your home, cry with you, and feel your loss. 

My father set the standard for what a husband, father and grandfather should be.  But we can’t talk about my father without talking about my mother.  My parents set the standard for what a happy marriage should be, and I am convinced that my siblings and I have happy marriages because of that.  

Thanks to my father, my brothers had an example to follow,  and my sister and I knew what to look for in a husband and future father of our children.

Thanks to my mother, my sister and I knew the kind of wives that we should be, and my brothers knew what they needed to look for in a wife and future mother of their children.


A Eulogy For My Father (Part 3 of 4)

My father was kind. He was generous. He was thoughtful. He was loved.

What makes me happiest is that dad knew how much he was loved.  

We as human beings have a bad habit not expressing to our loved ones exactly how much we love them.  We think that there will be always be time for those things.  But then we don’t find the time to do it.  Instead we wind up expressing those emotions when we gather for a funeral and it’s too late.

That is why I am so incredibly grateful that we were able to gather  and celebrate my dad’s 80th birthday.  He saw how much he was loved.  He saw siblings, nieces, nephews, and friends travel to New York, from all over the country, just to celebrate with him and let him know how much they cared about him.

He mentioned to me, more than once, how touched he was by all the messages, gifts, and cards that he received and by the fact that so many people came out to celebrate him. Thank you for helping us give that to my father; for letting him truly, truly know how much he was loved and for helping us express that to him while he was still alive.


A Eulogy For My Father (Part 4 of 4)

And now a message for my mother: Mom, dad loved you and appreciated you. He valued you. He recognized how much you loved him and the great effort that you always made for him and for our family - especially when he got sick. 

He knew that the joyous life our family lived would have been impossible without you. The memories we have with dad and the familial love that we share would have been impossible without you.

I know you are hurting and your heart is broken, but you are not alone. Your family is here. You have your children and their spouses, your grandchildren, your siblings, dad’s siblings, your nieces and nephews, and our cousins.  And we can't forget about our friends who are part of our extended family. Those with whom we take vacations every year and share every Christmas.  We all still need you.  There are still celebrations to be had – birthdays, graduations, weddings perhaps even great-grandchildren.

You're not alone. You will never be alone. Have strength in knowing that we are here with you and, even if he is not present in life, dad will always be with us. When you need him, you just have to look at the beautiful family that you built together.

I wish I had a glass to raise to right now in my father’s honor and say a toast to his memory.  

Since I don’t have it, I am going to ask all of you to do that. The next time you are having a drink and celebrating with your loved ones, tell them that you love them. Then, think of my dad and toast to him.  Promise to continue his legacy of kindness, compassion and generosity and he will continue to be eternally happy. 


Blanco is in so many of my favorite memories.  One of those is when we all went to Vegas together and in the airport he pulled out a sandwich and gave it to me. That was Blanco, always prepared and caring. The mark he left is a great one, and because of this he’ll never really be gone.  My deepest condolences to you during this dark times.  Please do not hesitate to reach out.  I’m here for support.  

There is an expression in DR to describe someone who has an impeccable kind of soul, "buena fe."  When I think of the personification of gentility, happiness and kindness, of "buena fe," I think of Tio Blanco.  Not long after meeting Osiris (in 2003) he introduced me to his "querido tio Blanco" (really another father to him) with great enthusiasm.  It was evident that Osiris admired and loved Blanco--that he held a truly special place in his heart--and it was not long before I also loved Blanco and saw what a truly unique being he was.  He welcomed me into his fold, he was effusive with his feelings, regaled me and my kids with loving words and never failed to let me know that he felt happy to have me around. It will be truly difficult to adapt to life without him. I often daydreamed about my own children being able to one day come to Blanco for advice, as Osiris told me he often did as a teenager.  I felt a sort of comfort and ease when I thought about Luna and Matias being able to have that as well. 
How do we fill the hole that will be left by his absence? My only thought is that we learn from the exemplary being he was and do as he did: we gather, we laugh, we continue to be kind to each other, we eat many cakes and many cups of coffee, we dance and offer each other hugs and kind words.
Blanco was a kind of a sage, a wise and loving soul, a safe harbor and human hearth. He seemed to know something that can only be learned after living many lives.  I will miss him dearly and painfully but will hopefully one day be able to rejoice and find solace in the memories we will share of our time in his presence. I feel honored and fortunate to be able to count Tio Blanco as one of the ancestors in my pantheon.  

My caring, loving, kind, humble, funny, calm, and always excellent advice giving uncle was truly one of a kind. I sit here incredulous and with great difficulty gathering my thoughts, but what is easy to gather is how forgiving and accepting my dear uncle was all the times that I vomited all over all his cars, nearly every weekend when I was a kid. He never had an ill thing to say about my vomiting in his cars, or when I broke a ceiling tile in his basement, or when I broke the window on the garage door, or whenever I would act too much like a typical teenager. He was always understanding and instead of anger, he responded with beautiful loving advice. When I think of the model of a good person, it is he that I think of. He was always so calm, never in a rush.  My wife and I would joke that Blanco would live forever because he was so calm.  Blanco always had an interest in people that would enter his or any of his loved ones lives.  He valued what is truly important in this world; people and the kindness that he would share with them..  Blanco was always busy with a home project and his backyard plants. From the many stories the uncles (his brothers) would tell in the Dominican Republic, it’s easy to gather that Blanco, even as a young man, was the levelheaded, kind, calm, and good advice giving one in the tribe. Blanco and I loved to talk about gardening. We traded plants and seeds of all kinds. When I met my wife, Blanco immediately welcomed her into the family with open arms telling her that he loved her like a daughter. When my kids were born, I was so excited that they were getting to know him and I took for granted that he would see them grow up. I don’t know how to say goodbye to my second dad rather my other dad as I would call him, but I find peace and know that he had peace in being able to look back on his life and seeing the multitudes that he nurtured, helped, and guided. What a privilege it has been to have shared my life with such a beautiful being. 

To Senora Rodriquez, Betty, Jose, Emilio and Denise,
I am so very sad to hear of your Dad's passing. He was a very special human being. I met your Dad during Betty's  law school years, when she would invite me over for Thanksgiving or Christmas dinner because I had no place to call home for the holidays. He made me feel that I was part of the family.  He and your Mom always made sure I left with leftovers to last the next few days (whenever Osiris was not taking home the good eats). I knew that he had set the standard on how I wanted to have future family gatherings when I had my own family. He was always kind and when he met Sam, he did not hesitate to tell him to "take good care" of me. He was so very loving towards all his children, daughters-in-laws and grandchildren. You all loved and cared for him as any parent would only wish, and be proud of, from  children who realized that family was so very important after losing a brother at a young age.  His main love was the beautiful woman and mother of his children who was his partner all these years, through sickness and health. I pray that the many great memories with your Dad will bring some comfort to your family during this difficult time.  Our thoughts and prayers are  with you all. Love Ani and Sam. 

Él ser más noble, modesto, contento, familiar, bondadoso, especial y único. Dónde llegaba sé sentia un amor y una páz qué sólo él transmitia cón su forma dé ser y su sonrisa angelical. Formamos cón él un lazo dé amor, amistad, familia dé un amor incondicional. Lo extrañaremoros cón locura, peró llevaremos cón nosotros todos los innolvidables momentos vivido en familia. Y lo más bello será lo más inculcado, vivir su legado! Dé ser simple, modesto, cariñoso y vivir la vida feliz y a plenitud. Té queremos mucho Blanco, qué reines en él Paraiso cón Dios, dónde estoy segura llenaras él ambiente dè un amor puro y sano. Cón mucho amor y cariño, Carlos, Julisa, Nick Y Scarlet. 

OBITUARY

Justiniano "Blanco" Rodriguez

26 October, 1939 – 23 August, 2021

Forest Park Funeral Home

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