Connie Guevara, Lindenhurst mother of four, dies

Connie Guevara survived breast cancer about a dozen years ago, drawing on the power of her faith, but the Lindenhurst mother of four recently lost a fight with another form of cancer, the family said.

Guevara was diagnosed with a rare uterine cancer in the fall of 2014. She died Nov. 11 in her sleep while receiving hospice care at her home. She was 72.

"Even up until the end, she always wanted to take care of us," said her daughter, Martha Guevara of Lindenhurst, a morning news editor for Newsday.com.

Connie Guevara emigrated from Colombia with her husband more than 40 years ago. Deeply devout, she slept with a picture of Pope John Paul II under her pillow, the family said.

The youngest of eight siblings, Guevara grew up on a farm outside of Bogota, her daughter said.

In the late 1960s, Guevara and her husband, Jose, moved to America so he could further his career as an accountant. They settled initially in Jackson Heights, Queens, and she did her best to acclimate to the bustle of New York City, taking English classes and learning the subway system.

"She was brave," Martha Guevara said.

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Connie Guevara and her husband raised two boys and two girls in Wantagh after moving there in 1980. The couple were married for 50 years.

She briefly worked as a merchandise clerk for a Caldor department store in Freeport, but focused mostly on being a mother and homemaker.

Guevara adored her children, raising them to be humble and kind, and insisted on cooking for her family every day. "She didn't believe in leftovers," her daughter said.

Karla Feinberg of Merrick recalled how her mother loved shopping for bargains with her daughters the day after Christmas. At the crack of dawn, she'd be lying in bed with her coat and sneakers on.

"She jumped up when I opened the door and said 'I'm ready,' " Feinberg said.

When Guevara was diagnosed with breast cancer, Feinberg admired her mother's strength. "She didn't know how strong she was because she had a lot of fear sometimes," she said.

Guevara knew the end was near after her second cancer diagnosis, but worried about her family and 2-year-old grandson, Lucas Feinberg.

"Please God, bless and protect my husband, my children, my Lucas and all my family," she prayed aloud, Martha Guevara said.

She died at home with family members nearby, including Lucas. "That was her wish. She wanted to be with her family," her daughter said.

In addition to her husband and daughters, survivors include sons, Fernando Guevara of Lindenhurst and Robert Guevara of East Meadow; sisters, Blanca Lizarazo of Los Angeles and Teresa Pinzon and Rosa Pinzon, both of Chia, Colombia; and brothers, Fernando Pinzon and Constantino Pinzon, both of Bogota, Colombia.

A funeral Mass will be celebrated Tuesday at 11 a.m. at Our Lady of Perpetual Help Church, 201 S. Wellwood Ave., in Lindenhurst. Burial will be at St. Charles/Resurrection Cemeteries in Farmingdale.

In lieu of flowers, the family asks that donations be made to St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, 14 Pennsylvania Plaza #1615, New York, NY 10122.