By DAVID E. EARLY / Mercury
News
every
weekday, Rocio Mendez took the hand of her 5-year-old daughter,
Stephanie, and went for a nice walk. They'd saunter through their
East San Jose neighborhood to Goss Elementary, where mom would pick
up her 8-year-old daughter, Marilyn.
For the 42-year-old mother of four, the daily walks were full
of girl talk and giggling -- until Oct. 13, when all the laughter
died in sorrow.
Rocio Mendez and Stephanie were on Cinderella Lane, crossing South
Jackson Avenue with the light, when a pick-up truck turned onto
Jackson. What three witnesses saw next was horrible.
The truck slammed into mother and daughter, knocking them to the
ground. The driver allegedly stopped, saw Stephanie writhing on
the ground and an immobile Rocio Mendez -- one shoe knocked off.
And then he drove away.
Minutes later, paramedics were on the scene to care for the bruised
and battered Stephanie. But her mom had ""severe head trauma,''
and a day later, at San Jose Medical Center, she died.
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Nicky Cruz hugs his daughters Stephanie, 5, and Marilyn, 8.
(Susanna
Frohman / Mercury News)
|
"I left home that morning with a loving wife and four happy kids,''
says Rocio's husband Nicky Cruz, sitting in the kitchen of the small
apartment where the six of them lived. "I came home and my wife
is gone forever. How did such a thing happen to us?''
Since the accident, Nicky Cruz has stayed close to home with his
shell-shocked children, and the whole family is facing the holidays
with despair. Donations from Wish Book readers might lift the gloom
-- even if just for a few days -- by helping them escape on a family
outing.
Money has been tighter than normal since his wife's death because
Cruz has not been able to tend to the home-repair business he launched
several years ago.
"I can do everything including windows, doors, sheetrock and tile.
And I do very good work,'' says the man who proudly handled the
earning while Rocio handled the home front.
"She was a very good mother. All our kids are good kids,'' he says
of the girls and of Nicky Jr., 13, and Gonzalo, 12.
"I was here when the police came,'' says a sad-eyed Gonzalo. ""They
said it was a serious accident with my mom. I didn't know what to
do.''
Cruz was working on a rehab job when one of his sisters called
with the bad news. He rushed to the hospital, where he found his
little girl being treated for multiple abrasions.
"Rocio pushed Stephanie out of the way,'' says Cruz, who almost
broke in two when he saw his wife, suffering from a brain hemorrhage,
connected to a life-support unit.
"My beautiful wife was laying there and I had a feeling that was
difficult and terrible,'' he says. ""And my boys kept asking, "Why
Papi? Why did this guy kill my mama?''
According to police reports, Jason C. Clifton, 31, was arrested
three hours after the incident and allegedly admitted to going "blank''
when he drove away from the scene. The San Jose man remains in Santa
Clara County jail under a $1 million bond. His next court appearance
is Dec. 3.
In recalling his wife, the closest Cruz comes to smiling is when
he conjures up that "skinny girl'' he first saw more than two decades
ago, hanging out near his neighborhood in Mexico City.
"As soon as I saw her, I said, "Do you have a boyfriend?''' says
Cruz. "And then when I found out she only lived three streets away,
I knew she was mine.''
Even after being declared brain dead, Rocio Mendez' family knew
what she'd want, because they knew the kind of person she was. Which
is why they allowed medical science to harvest organs that would
help someone else live.
As Christmas approaches, all of the Cruzes feel like it will be
unbearable to spend it in the apartment that is still so full of
the spirit of someone now gone. The tightly-knit family was accustomed
to doing everything together.
Cruz recalls that his beloved wife used to dream of the day they
could all afford a trip to Disneyland. But he always disappointed
by her saying, "Later honey. We can't do it now, we have to do it
later.''
Now, the idea of going to the Magic Kingdom seems even sweeter
as a way to get a respite during this difficult time.
Airfare
for the family ($1,272) and four-day
passes to Disneyland and California Adventure theme parks ($684),
would provide a much-needed getaway. Two rooms for three nights
in the Disneyland Hotel ($1,440)
will allow them, at least briefly, an opportunity for healing as
one.
"I've never been to Disneyland before,'' says Marilyn, nodding
along with her baby sister and older brother. "That sounds really
nice.''
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