Published: 07.23.2006

Ernesto Portillo Jr. : Sinaloa dream died at Tucson intersection
Ernesto Portillo Jr.
Mauricio Lopez is in Sinaloa, Mexico, today with his two infant children. They traveled to the place where Lopez met his wife, Fabiola Rodriguez-Corrales, nine years ago. It is where they became best of friends, where they fell in love and where they married less than three years ago.
They went to bury her.
Lopez's 30-year-old wife died last Sunday when, as they were on their way to church services, a car ran a red light and rammed into the Lopez Oldsmobile minivan at West 29th Street and the Interstate 10 frontage road.
The driver of the other vehicle was cited for failing to stop at a red light. That carries an enhanced penalty, meaning the fine is increased, police said.
The accident devastated two families, but the death cuts Lopez and his children immeasurably deeper.
Friday evening, Lopez received his wife's body at their small church, Iglesia de Jesucristo Templo Ebenezer, near South Seventh Avenue and West 22nd Street.
It was the first time Lopez had seen her body since the accident.
The small evangelical community prayed and sang in Spanish. Their fervent voices filled the building.
They bid her goodbye in her spiritual journey and in her last physical journey to el Valle del Carrizo, near Los Mochis, where Rodriguez-Corrales was born.
"She was friendly, respectful and humble when I first met her," Lopez said. "I was too shy to tell her I was attracted to her."
I met Lopez, 31, at his studio apartment on the South Side where they lived for the last two years. His children, 19-month-old Obed Lopez, and 2-month-old Alondra Lopez, were staying with Lopez's father.
Lopez spoke in a near hushed voice. He said he hadn't slept well or much in the days since the tragedy.
His days were filled with telephone calls from church friends and family members, some from California and Mexico. He re-lived the accident during each call while answering questions and accepting condolences.
Lopez said his nights are filled with an awful single image of an oncoming car and sounds of metal crashing on metal.
To chase it all away, he recalls mental pictures of soft smiles on a happy face, the sound of laughter, the smell of freshly baked small pumpkin empanadas and the touch of loving fingers on his now lonely hands.
When he holds his son in his arms, Obed hugs his father tighter and longer, said Lopez. His son doesn't want to let go of his father. The child senses his mother is gone, he said.
"That breaks my heart," Lopez said.
"The pain will never go away but God gives me some tranquillity, some peace."
Lopez said his wife was very active in their small church community. She helped care for the children of fellow church members or gathered donations of clothing that were distributed in Agua Prieta and Nogales, Sonora.
It was through a church function that they first met. During their courtship, she completed her university degree in public accounting.(in Mexico) When they finally wed in December 2003, they immediately headed to Nogales, Sonora, where they found jobs.
But within a year they moved to Tucson where Lopez found a construction job. She stayed home to care for their first child.
Their dream was to save enough money to return to Sinaloa and build a home near both of their families. That dream died with her.

http://www.azstarnet.com/allheadlines/139075