Hernaldo Mendez Salazar

Hernaldo Mendez was the son of Alberto Mendez and Melania Salazar. He was born in Granada, Nicaragua on September 15th, 1976. He was a beloved son, brother, husband, father, cousin, uncle and friend. His mother sent him to the United States to live with his father when he was 12 years old in November 1988 due to the civil war in Nicaragua. She wanted to avoid her child becoming a child soldier and wanted him to have better opportunities that their home country could not offer due to corruption by the government. He lived in Farmingdale, where he lived with his family and went to Farmingdale Middle School for a year. After that, he moved to Long Beach with his father, where he also attended school for a year and later moved to Freeport, where he went to high school and studied up to 11th grade. His favorite sports to play in high school were baseball, basketball, and softball, which he continued to play later on in life. His first marriage was to Yorleny Robleto, who gave him 2 beautiful children, Kattie Mendez and Christopher Mendez. His second marriage was with Maybi Ramirez, who he met when he was young and later decided to form a family. Hernaldo and Maybi lived together for 25 years and also had two beautiful children, Maybi and Josue Mendez. Hernaldo was a hardworking man from a young age. His late mother once told a story that reflects the kind of man he grew up to be. Hernaldo, being a young boy, would stay up late nights with his mother while she worked as a dress designer and tailor in their home. She would insist on telling Hernaldo to go to bed, and he told her he would not go to bed until she did. He would wait for her to finish and then would say, “Okay, now we can go to bed.” When he thought his mother was asleep, he would sneak out of bed and continue sewing. She also said that she found him reading a book and when she asked him what he was reading, he said he was learning to speak English because he was going to work hard when he grew up, so that she would no longer have to work again. He did just that. He started working at Oceanside Laundry when he was 15 years old. He later worked in a liquor store, a dry cleaner, and at his last job he worked for Accurate Hood and Duct Cleaning before becoming disabled in 2015. He started having circulation problems in his mid-thirties. Later, he developed kidney disease, which resulted in him going to dialysis for 9 years. He got into a car accident in 2023. His back was fractured in four places and his lung punctured. This resulted in his respiratory problems and later a triple bypass. On June 1st, 2025, Hernaldo succumbed to his health issues and passed away. He put up a very hard fight and, despite all his suffering, he did it with a smile. He made sure to thank everyone that lent a helping hand. He was especially thankful to his family, friends, doctors, nurses, aides, transportation workers that took him to and from dialysis and secretary workers from the many clinics he went to throughout his life. He was very grateful for the many opportunities God gave him in his 48 years of life to survive so many health complications and allow him to live for 10 years after he was diagnosed. He leaves a legacy to his children and grandchildren. He taught them strength, he was fearless and trusted God's perfect plan.

A visitation for Hernaldo will be held Friday, June 6, 2025 from 2:00 PM to 4:00 PM. A visitation will occur Friday, June 6, 2025 from 6:00 PM to 9:00 PM. A funeral mass will occur Saturday, June 7, 2025 from 10:00 AM to 11:00 AM at Our Lady of the Assumption RC Church, 1 Molloy Street, Copiague, NY 11726. An interment will occur Saturday, June 7, 2025 from 11:45 AM to 12:15 PM at St. Charles Cemetery, 2015 Wellwood Avenue, Farrmingdale, NY 11735.