Rodriguez, Manuel

April 5, 1946 – January 11, 2024

At age 77, Manuel Rodriguez, of St. Louis, MO, passed away peacefully in his home on January 11, 2024.   He was born on April 5, 1946, in Tejupilco, Mexico. Manuel was a husband, father, grandfather, and great grandfather. In 1967, Manuel married the love of his life, Maria de Jesus Lara.  During their 56 years of marriage, they had 7 children, 18 grandchildren and 7 great grandchildren.

Manuel loved his family unconditionally and will be dearly missed and forever loved. He loved to share his life experiences with everyone, and each experience ended with a life lesson.  He never failed to provide for his family, whether it was cooking a special meal or taking out his wallet, but he always wanted to help. His humor and jokes always put a smile on your face. His age never stopped him from having a good time. He was always the life of the party and the first one on the dance floor. He loved to dance, sing, play games, and overall enjoy life. Manuel showed everyone around him the importance of family, the power of laughter, and the value of a home cooked meal.  Above all, he taught his family the importance of praying and being grateful for all of God’s blessings.  Every morning at 10:30am, you would find him praying the rosary.  He was a peaceful man who loved everyone.  Manuel was all these things, and so much more. While friends and family may not know what the future looks like without him, we know we’re better people because we were all loved by him.

He is survived by his wife, Maria Rodriguez, his children Rosalia (Dave) Casselman, Jose (Carmen) Rodriguez, Veronica (Luis) Gutierrez, Gabriel Rodriguez, Guadalupe (Rafael) Lopez, Adriana (Mario) DeAnda, Andrea Rodriguez, 18 grandchildren, 7 great grandchildren, 3 sisters, Carmen, Juana and Hermelinda and one brother, Heriberto, many nieces and nephews and unofficially adopted children and grandchildren. He was preceded in death by his father, Placido Rodriguez, his mother, Gregoria Castañeda, two brothers, Raul and Placido and one sister, Nelva.

Services; A visitation will be held Thursday, January 18^th from 4 – 7 PM at Kutis Funeral Home, 5255 Lemay Ferry Road, Mehlville, MO 63129.  Memorial mass will be held at 12 PM on Friday, January 19^th at St. Cecilia Catholic Church, 5418 Louisiana Ave, St. Louis, MO 63111. Interment to follow at Park Lawn Cemetery, Lemay, MO.