Rufino Mendez Camarero

Rufino Mendez, beloved husband and devoted father, passed away at age 89 on Wednesday, Feb. 16, 2022, at Vitas Hospice Center in Kendall, Florida. Rufino was born in Baez, Cuba on July 10, 1932. Baez is a village in the municipality of Placetas, within the Villa Clara province of Cuba. Rufino immigrated to Perth Amboy, NJ in 1960. He then married Nelsa and started a family. A proud businessman, he started Mendez Furniture with his family which served the Perth Amboy area. Rufino then moved with his wife and sons to Miami, FL in 1980, where he invested in hotels, shopping centers, apartment buildings, and single-family homes in the Miami-Dade County area. He was an avid fisherman in the Florida Keys and enjoyed cooking for his friends and family.

He was predeceased by his parents, Pelayo and Esperanza Mendez; his wife, Nelsa Mendez; four sisters: Estrella Barrueta, Concepcion Mendez, Carmen Rodriguez, and Adela Monestina; and one brother, Pedro Mendez. He is survived by his sons, Joaquin and his wife Faith of Miramar, and Pelayo

and his wife Aileen of Miami Springs; one brother, Rafael Mendez of Miami Beach; four grandsons: Jesus Mendez, Jared Mendez, Augustin Mendez, and Diego Mendez; two grandaughters: Alexa Mendez and Olivia Mendez; Three nephews: Luis Mendez, Albert Mendez, and Francisco Monestina; Three nieces:

Naylet Rodriguez-Mendez, Lisette Mendez-Lopez, and Vanessa Mendez-Gamez; four nieces and nephews by marriage: Maria Theresa Perez, Jose Luis Rios, Jr., David Salet, and Joaqin Salet, Jr.

A visitation will be held from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. at the Caballero-Rivero Funeral Home in Hialeah, FL, followed by a 12:30 p.m. mass at Blessed Trinity Catholic Church in Virginia Gardens, FL.

Fond memories and expressions of sympathy may be shared at www.riverofuneralhomehialeah.com for the Mendez family.