By Jennifer Corr
A photo of the late Rev. Jose Luis Lopez, 76, a longtime pastor of Iglesia Ciudad De Refugio, holds special meaning to his family. It’s of him laying down a brick for a wall in the in the parking lot. His dream was to expand the parking lot and eventually build the church a second floor.
“It’s a great big loss for us, for our church, for the community,” his daughter Brenda Lopez said. “We’re hurting right now, but we know we have to continue his legacy. He had a lot of visions and goals for this church.”
Jose, a beloved member of the community, died on Nov. 30. He and his wife, Rev. Juanita Lopez, have been pastoring Iglesia Ciudad De Refugio for over 42 years.
“He was always taking care of everyone,” Brenda said. “He was the head of our home. Even though my sister and I are already adults and we have children and families, he still played such an important role in our lives.”
When asked to describe her husband, Juanita called Jose a sweet man.
“Everybody is in shock,” Juanita said. “Everyone is thinking, ‘Oh my gosh that man.’ So many people cared about him and loved him. He was special for a lot of people."
Describing her husband as someone who was always smiling Juanita said he liked people. “He likes to go to breakfast,” she said. “He was a wonderful, grateful, loving, caring man.”
In 2021, Jose and Juanita Lopez would have been married for 53 years. They met in Puerto Rico. “He saw [me] in a store that my grandma had and when he saw me, he said he loves me," she said.
Before moving to Glen Cove, the couple lived in the Bay Shore, Brentwood area for 25 years. Then, 42 years ago, in 1978, they moved to Glen Cove to co-pastor Iglesia Ciudad De Refugio.
“He loved this community,” Juanita said. “He loved to go to the village and walk around, seeing the stores, seeing the new construction. He loved the buildings. He was very excited about the community changing.”
City of Glen Cove Mayor Tim Tenke held a moment of silence for Jose, calling him a very special person in the community who served his church and the city very well. He’ll be greatly missed, Tenke said, then offering his condolences on behalf of the City Council to the family.
“Councilman Gaitley [Stevenson-Mathews] honored him on his page and we know my Dad was generous but we started seeing people that we don’t know from the community sharing stories about him,” Brenda said. “Some lady said, ‘Oh he was a great man, he paid for my shake at one of the stores one time’ and someone else said ‘He was such a nice gentleman’ and I said, ‘How does he know all these people?’”
“We were just really surprised as people shared their stories,” Brenda added. “It gives us peace and the courage and the strength to move on.”
Among the people Jose impacted was Yeny Correa. The now 42-year-old met him when she was 15-years-old. “He was loving, he was kind, he was caring,” Correa said. “He looked for opportunities to bless people. Everywhere he went, he was always on the lookout for people in need.”
Whether it was a meal, coffee, clothing or anything else a person would need, Jose would do what he could to supply those needs, Correa said. “He had a way of knowing you were not having a good day,” Correa said. “He would just take one look at you and he would just ask right away, ‘What’s going on?’”
Correa was the children and youth administrator of Iglesias Ciudad De Refugio for many years. “He would always stop by during children’s services,” Correa said. “He got to high five the kids, ask them how they are doing and compliment them.”
Jose had a vision for the youth, Correa said. “He always talked about the future and the legacy and how important it was to go to school,” she said. “He celebrated every one of our successes.”
He also hated clutter, Correa said, and took pride in how the church looked, always working on painting, decorating and building onto the church. He would also pick flowers from the garden to place in the church. “The tiniest detail, he was very attentive to detail,” Correa said. “The colors he would pick, the rugs.”
“He was here every day,” Brenda said. “Checking and cleaning and making sure everything was running smoothly, always paying attention to what is happening in the community and how we can help. Who can we give to, who is in need? Anything from grocery help to rent assistance help to funeral help. You name it, he was always paying attention to see who was in need.”
Jose and his kindness and generosity were known way beyond Glen Cove, as he often traveled to other countries to preach the Gospel. Brenda said he’d often come back with his suitcase lighter then when he left, as he’d leave his clothes behind.
“His ties, his suits, he would leave it for the people who were less fortunate,” Brenda said. “He would come back and we would say Dad, we’d call him Papí, we’d say ‘Where are your clothes?’ He’d say, ‘Ah I just brought back a couple of things, those are replaceable, they need it more than I do.’ That left a lasting impression on a lot of different ministries all over the world.”
And like he would soar on an airplane for his travels to help people across the world, when Correa thinks of Jose, she thinks of an eagle. “He was always preaching about the eagle, how eagles have a second chance,” she said. “Every time we think of him, we think of an eagle.”
“He was just a wonderful, wonderful person,” Correa added. “Loving.”
Rev. Jose Luis Lopez is survived by his wife, Rev. Juanita Lopez; his children Naomi Hernandez, Ruthy and Brenda Lopez; grandfather of Andrew, Jasmine, Gabriella, Jonathan, Isaiah, Luis and Isaac and great-grandfather of Savannah, Hope and Samantha. He’s also survived by brothers and a sister.
Photo courtesy Brenda Lopez
Uploaded online: https://www.liherald.com/stories/pastor-is-remembered-for-his-extraordinary-kindness,129395?
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