An Ecuadorian man who came to the U.S. three years ago for a better life is being remembered as a family icon and role model by friends, relatives and fellow church members.
Douglas Rodríguez was one of three victims killed at a Jewish deli in Jersey City, New Jersey, on Tuesday in a shooting that is being investigated as a potential act of domestic terrorism, reportedly fueled by anti-Semitic and anti-police views.
Rodriguez, 49, also known as Miguel, had worked at the JC Supermarket for about a year, according to Williams Machazek, the pastor of Iglesia Nueva Vida, a Catholic church in Newark.
Rodríguez regularly attended services with his 11-year-old daughter and wife, Martha Freire — both of whom volunteered at the church, leading prayers and teaching children, Machazek said.
"He loved his wife and daughter and was devoted to his family and marriage," Machazek told NBC News. "He was very disciplined and led his family to follow religion."
Gina Beltran, Freire's sister-in-law, said Rodriguez would “take the food he had and the shirt off his back and give it to someone in need without hesitating.”
She said Rodriguez had been a commercial engineer in Ecuador, but after he was laid off a few years ago he decided to come to the U.S. for better job and educational opportunities.
“He wanted to see his daughter go to college,” Beltran said.
Related
As the church works out plans to hold a memorial service for Rodriguez, family members have taken to social media to share their tributes.
"How are you going to go like this, uncle? You are an icon in the family ... a role model," Xavier Andres Ruiz, who identified himself as Rodríguez's nephew, wrote on Twitter. "You do not know the pain and emptiness I feel at the moment ... but I will remember you like this with a GREAT SMILE!!"
Ruiz added that he was sending a kiss and hug to his uncle in heaven.
Jersey City has long been home to a growing Latino population, with Hispanics making up nearly 30 percent of the region's population, according to the 2013-17 American Community Survey. It's also part of Hudson County, known for generations as "Havana on the Hudson" for its sizable Cuban-American population. In the last two decades, the area — just across the river from New York City — has seen an influx of immigrants from Central and South America.
Rodríguez's niece Vanessa Reyes wrote in the description of a GoFundMe to help his family pay for the funeral expenses that her uncle's death was "a devastating and unexpected loss," especially since he was the family provider.
"He was a God-loving, honest and hard-working person was who always available to help others," Reyes wrote.
The other victims of the grocery store attack were Mindy Ferencz, 31, and Moshe Deutsch, 24, who were both members of the Hasidic Jewish community. Ferencz ran JC Kosher Supermarket with her husband. Jersey City Police Detective Joseph Seals was killed before the store attack, after encountering the shooters in a cemetery.
The two suspects were also found dead in the store.
Follow NBC Latino on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
