Life Story for
Oilda Lamelas Lopez
Oilda Lamelas Lopez, 89 years old, passed away on Sunday, July 10th, 2016 at the home she shared with her daughter, Ana, and son in law, Alberto Leyva, in Coral Springs, Florida. She faced a long debilitating illness with courage and was lovingly cared for by Ana and Alberto.
Oilda was born in Habana, Cuba on October 18th, 1926 to Santiago and Inocencia Lamelas. She is the older of two sisters; Nilda lives with her husband Antonio “Nico” Carbajales, in Miami, Florida, her stepsister Marta passed away while living in Cuba.
Oilda attended the University of Habana and in 1965 received a Doctorate in Philosophy and Letters.
Oilda was married to Rudesindo “Rude” Lopez in January, 1955. They were married for 31 years until he passed away from heart illness at the age of 59.
Rude and Oilda brought their three children to the United States in 1968 to provide them with a better life. They first settled in Newark, New Jersey, where Rude worked double shifts in the CHARMS factory, and Oilda was hired to teach children in the English as a Second Language program before being promoted to the school librarian. Oilda was a very loving mother and was determined to handle any obstacle placed in front of her. She attended college at night and earned a Masters degree. Often tired from her long days she would study late into the night using an ”invaluable dictionary” to get through the lessons.
In 1972 Oilda and Rude purchased their first home in Union, N.J. because the school system offered more opportunities for their children. In November of 1985 Rude passed away. Oilda remained in her home until she retired in 1990, that same year she moved to Coral Springs, Florida to live with Ana and Alberto. She was able to care for her grandsons, Danny and Kevin, while Ana and Al worked. She also helped her daughter Silvia when she moved to Coral Springs in 1994 with her husband Jorge, and their children Michael and Alissa.
Oilda loved books. She dreamed of visiting the places she read about and loved the annual trips to Spain she took with Rude where they visited family and friends. After Oilda retired and moved to Florida she was able to travel to her heart’s content with her friends, Hilda, Cachita, Josefina, Lucia, Leonor, and Mercedes.
Although cooking was not her forte, she would make the best “caldo gallego” (Galician soup) for Rude since she knew he loved it. It was a time consuming dish to make and would take all day but she would only use fresh ingredients and made it taste as close as possible to the authentic Spanish caldo gallego.
Oilda and Rude raised three children, the oldest Jorge Luis, and younger twin daughters, Ana Margarita and Silvia Rosa. Oilda was preceded in death by her devoted husband Rude and her loving son, Jorge Luis, who passed away June 17th, 2016. She is survived by her son’s children, Emilio and Rudy, her daughter-in-law, Yomaris Lopez, daughters Ana Leyva (husband Alberto), grandsons Daniel and Kevin, daughter Silvia Diaz (husband Jorge) and grandchildren Michael and Alissa.
Oilda left a legacy of love and we pray that she is now at peace with our Lord in heaven.
The funeral services are scheduled for Friday, July 15th from 7-9PM at Savino-Weissman Funeral Home, 2950 FL-7 #101, Margate, Florida, 33063. The Interment will be on Saturday, July 16th at 10:30AM at at Our Lady Queen of Heaven Cemetery, 1500 S. State Road 7, North Lauderdale, Florida, 33068.
