Georgina Rodriguez

Georgina Rodriguez, beloved mother, grandmother, and great-grandmother, passed away peacefully at home Tuesday, December 18, surrounded by family. She was the heart of her family, and she will be missed. She was 87 years old. Georgina lived with great spirit, dedicating her life to her family. All who were loved by her know she succeeded in her goal to follow St. Therese, who said, “What matters in life is not great deeds, but great love.” She is preceded in death by her husband of 52 years, Dr. Hector Rodriguez; her parents Flor de Maria Molne and Jorge de la Torre. She is survived by her sister, Graciela de la Torre of Miami, three children and their spouses, Dr. Hector and Tammy Rodriguez of Kansas City, Mercy and Leo Carrasco, and Dr. Jorge and Patsy Rodriguez of Pasadena; eight grandchildren and their spouses, Yoly and Keith Gammel, Mercy Carrasco, Hector and Jennifer Rodriguez, Leo Carrasco, James and Jeannette Carrasco, Jay and Heather Rodriguez, Sarah and Wesley Hunter, and Elizabeth Rodriguez; and six great-grandchildren, Jessyca, Monnyca, Keith, Dillon, James, and Lauren, and a loving extended family. Georgina was born May 18, 1925 in Camaguey, Cuba. She graduated from the University of Havana Law School in 1948 and worked with her father as an attorney in Camaguey before opening her own Notary law practice. She spent a happy year studying Linguistics at Colombia University in New York. She and Hector married in 1952 and moved to Worcester, Massachusetts, where Hector was in a surgical residency. The couple returned to Ciego de Avila, Cuba, in 1954 and spent many happy years there and at the beach house on Cayo Algodones. Unfortunately, politics intervened, and the family left communist Cuba in 1969 to come to Pasadena, Texas. She then became director of a Head Start program in Pasadena. Education was very important to Georgina, and she often said, “Education is something they can never take away from you.” She was a longtime member of the Pan American Round Table of Houston, and she worked tirelessly for the scholarship program. PART Houston named her an Honorary Member, and continued to name scholarships for her each year. Hector and Georgina and their family were longtime parishioners of St. Augustine Catholic Church, where they supported many church and school programs. Georgina loved music of all kinds, but especially that of Cuban composer Ernesto Lecuona. She loved playing music, and enjoyed seeing her grandchildren follow in her footsteps. She was a patron of the Pasadena Philharmonic and was an honorary member of the Pasadena Music Teachers Association. Georgina was famous for her cooking, as well as her words of wisdom to her family members. She always said if she wrote a book, she would name it “Sin Prisa, Pero con Ritmo,” which described her unique style of “Slowly, but with Rhythm.” Life was full of joy for Georgina, and we in the family are stronger and better for it. We will always love you, Pila.