Manuela Rodriguez

Manuela Hernandez Maldonado was born to her Mother Felicita Maldonado and her Father Ramon Hernandez on January 2nd, 1935 in Rio Grande Puerto Rico. She is one of five siblings from her parents including her sisters Filomena, Mercedes (deceased) , Josefina (deceased), and her brother Esteban (deceased). Her other half siblings include her sisters Bernalda, Melania and Eva, and Her brothers Israel, Jose Ramon, Angel, Luis, and Nelson.

Manuela was born and raised on her family farm in the mountainous small town of Rio Grande. She was a simple woman who was pulled out of school in the fifth grade to help out on the family farm, mainly taking care of children and helping at the farm as needed until the age of 17. At 17 she ran away from home and made ends meet by housekeeping and working as a nanny for families in Puerto Rico.

At 25 she bravely moved to New York City in search of new opportunity for herself and hopefully a future family. Less than a year later she met Telesforo Rodriguez at the factory she worked in, and they got married in that same year. In 1961, she gave birth to her first child Myriam, and 4 years later she gave birth to her second child John (Johnny deceased).

In 1968 she began building her strong foundation of Christian faith, which she kept until the day of her death. She Loved Jesus and going to church. In her community she was well known as a powerful woman of prayer. Many people were encouraged by her faith and prayers and she led many people to her Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ throughout her life.

Manuela was a sweet soul who enjoyed staying at home. She was always around her own family, church family, or families that she cooked, cleaned, and nannied for. And if she wasn’t physically present, she was in constant communication with her family, always taking time to call her loved ones. Some of her Hobbies included: Praying and Reading the Bible, Going to church, Going for walks, spending time with her grandson, Watching Nature documentaries and Caso Cerrado.

Manuela was also a woman of profound strength. In her forties she beat Uterine cancer and In her fifties she endured the loss of her son Johnny at the age of 24. She prayed for years for God to give her a grandson and In 1998 God granted her request. Her daughter Myriam gave birth to her grandson Emanuel and she loved him dearly. In her later years she helped out around the house despite painful arthritis and stomach and digestion issues, and she lived her last 9 years with Alzheimer's disease. Over time her Alzheimers made her forget many of the skills she developed. She forgot how to cook, clean, take care of herself, she even forgot how to walk and talk. But she never forgot how to love.

Manuela’s legacy is much more unseen than seen. She lives in the hearts of all of the lives she touched. She was a Pillar of Faith for her community and her family. She fought the good fight and now rests in the arms of her Savior. She is Survived by her daughter Myriam and her grandson Emanuel.