Family, friends say Hispanic veterans memorial in Lorain would honor the late Cel Rivera

LORAIN — The late Celestino "Cel" Rivera was dedicated to honoring fellow veterans of all backgrounds. His friends, co-workers and family said the best way the community can honor his service, memory and legacy is to make a proposed Ohio Hispanic Veterans Memorial happen next to Oakwood Park. A large group of people gathered at the gazebo in Oakwood Park to honor the former Lorain police chief, a Wakeman resident who died unexpectedly at age 72 on June 22, listen to music and learn about plans for the memorial. Rivera served on the Lorain Police Department for 49 years, including 25 of those as chief. He retired in 2019. Rivera's widow, Elba Armstrong, thanked "all of you for being here today to help celebrate this day for Cel." "He would have loved to have seen all of you," she said, "because he cared so much for all of you. He loved the Hispanic population. He loved them with all his heart. And he would have done anything to assist and help and promote the Hispanic population." A U.S. Army veteran of the Vietnam War, Rivera and Armstrong traveled Ohio to view other memorials as part of their mission on the Ohio Hispanic Veterans Memorial Project Committee. Plans were announced in April 2021 to enlarge a small memorial at East 31st Street and Clinton Avenue in Oakwood Park by creating a larger space at East 31st Street and Grove Avenue, north of the Ohio Army National Guard armory. Rivera was "so intent on honoring especially those young men and friends of his who had served in Vietnam but didn't come back or came back tortured, and then some did not survive that. So he wanted to do something special. And that's exactly what we've tried to do," Armstrong said. "Just because he cared. Because he cared," she said through tears. "And we will continue with it, and we will make Cel very proud. And he will look at this and he will thank all of you for being a part of it and continuing to build this and make it the best memorial there is." Lorain City Councilman Rey Carrion, D-6th Ward, called Rivera "our friend, our hero, the pillar of this community, not only for the Hispanic community but the entire community here in Lorain." Rivera "met a lot of people, and every time he met a person he left an everlasting impact on every person that he met, just with the way he carried himself, with his kindness, his humbleness and his listening ability to sit down and listen always," he said. Rivera was "everyone's chief of police," Lorain Mayor Jack Bradley said, and changed the culture and reputation of the Lorain Police Department for the better. He promised "to continue this project in the memory of Celestino Rivera." Carrion said the fundraising goal for the first phase of the proposed memorial is $100,000, with a monument, flags, benches and pavers laid out "in a beautiful and respectful way." El Centro has a fund to help with the cost and there is an Ohio Hispanic Veterans Memorial Fund open at Northwest Bank, he said. Some of those present wore dark blue T-shirts with "Forever in our hearts. In loving memory of Celestino Rivera" on the front and a Lorain police chief's badge with a black- and blue-striped mourning band on the back. "Cel being Cel" meant a certain "relentlessness," Carrion said. As a result, the late chief also wanted to memorialize the Mexican, African-American, Italian and other ethnic groups of veterans. While we are all Americans, the councilman said, "after all, Lorain is the International City." "This is where it needs to be and we have to do it together," Carrion said. Bradley's chief of staff, Rick Soto, served with Rivera for nearly 30 years on the Lorain Police Department. He called Rivera a "mentor" and said he credits the late chief "for where I am today." "Until we meet again, my friend," Soto said. Contact Dave O'Brien at (440) 329-7129 or dobrien@chroniclet.com or on Twitter @daveobrienCT.