Obdulio Ruiz-Diaz: Sueños
Come True
Obdulio
Ruiz-Diaz talked often of mis sueños &emdash; "my
dreams." He had come to the United States from Paraguay
and said that he wanted a good job, a family and a good
home for them.
He dedicated his life to realizing all three goals,
said his wife, Rosa Villalba. He brought her to the
United States from Paraguay and they had three children:
Vanessa, 10, Pamela, 8, and Bryan, 6. Trained as an
architect, he found work that he enjoyed as a draftsman
and project manager at a New York company, Bronx
Builders. And, at 44, he found the house of his dreams,
he said, in Valley Stream, N.Y.; they closed the deal on
Sept. 6.
"Todos mis sueños se estan haciendo realidad,"
he said. "All of my dreams are coming true."
With the help of family and friends, Ms. Villalba and
her children moved into the house on Sept. 14, but
without Mr. Ruiz-Diaz. They celebrated Christmas with the
family of his best friend, Manuel DaMota, who was working
with him on a project at Windows on the World on Sept.
11. The families set aside two empty chairs in their
memory. "Everybody had wet eyes that night," Ms. Villalba
said.
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