Mercedes R. Rodriguez

Mercedes R. Rodriguez, 95, of Old Hickory, TN passed away February 4, 2023. She was born in Matanzas, Cuba on February 13, 1927, to parents, Fernando L. and Esther B. Cabrera. Mrs. Rodriguez graduated from the Commerce School of Havana, Cuba and from the Baptist Seminary of Havana, Cuba. She served alongside her husband, Rev. Daniel Rodriguez at churches in Cuba, Costa Rica, Miami, FL and Nashville TN. For thirty-five (35) years, in addition she worked for the Baptist Sunday School Board as Editor of Children’s Materials.

Mrs. Rodriguez possessed the gift of hospitality and enjoyed cooking. She especially enjoyed serving chicken and rice (arroz con pollo), flan, and Cuban coffee (cafecito Cubano). She loved serving as a Sunday School teacher, especially to children. She enjoyed playing the piano and often accompanied the congregational singing in their churches. During their ministry in Miami, FL, she and her husband welcomed more than three thousand (3,000) guests from Cuba into their three bedroom/one bath home which already housed their family of eight (8). Rev. Daniel and Mercedes Rodriguez were instrumental in finding them jobs and helping them establish new lives around the country.

Rev. Daniel and Mercedes Rodriguez “were devout followers of God, and they never once used their interpretation of the Bible to exclude anyone. Instead, they spoke love and service into every soul they encountered. The concept of “love the sinner, hate the sin” was foreign to them; hate would be far too great a burden to bear. They simply loved and welcomed. They didn’t just accept and then turn the other way. They accepted and enveloped others into their fold. And once you were enveloped, you knew you always had a home. They saw the divine in others, and in doing so, they pointed others to the divine.”

Mrs. Rodriguez is predeceased by her father, Fernando L. Cabrera; her mother, Esther B. Cabrera; her loving husband of seventy (70) years, Rev. Daniel Rodriguez; two sons; one daughter and a granddaughter. She is survived by her three children; fourteen grandchildren; and, twelve great grandchildren.

There will be a Gathering of Family & Friends at Hermitage Funeral Home on Thursday, February 9, from 10am until 11am. A Celebration of Life will follow in the Tulip Grove Room of the funeral home at 11am. Following the service, Mrs. Rodriguez will be laid to rest next to her husband in the Garden of Devotion at Hermitage Memorial Gardens. Fond memories and expressions of sympathy may be shared with the Rodriguez family by selecting “Add a Memory” at the bottom of this page.