Jesus Zeferino Ochoa

Jesus Zeferino Ochoa

January 1st, 1936 - January 1st, 2024

Jesus Zeferino Ochoa, better known as Zeferino, passed away on January 1st in 2024 at the exact age of 88 in Chicago, IL. He died suddenly in the hospital with family at his side.

He was born in the small city of Ocotlán, Jalisco in Mexico to very loving parents Ignacio Ochoa Ponce and Justina Zuñiga Sahagun. They instilled pride in family and of culture; traits ingrained in who he was throughout his lifetime. In his later years he liked to recite that "in Family Traditions, there always must be Fidelity, Morality, and Loyalty." So much so that he wrote it on scraps of paper we now hold as treasures.

In his earlier years, Zeferino studied radio broadcasting earning his licensed certification in Mexico City. He began to make his mark as a radio announcer at XEAN Radio Station in his hometown of Ocotlan. He was then given the opportunity of sponsorship to travel and become a resident in the United States. Zeferino arrived in Chicago in the late 1950s and he eventually made that city his second home. He became a United States citizen (his adopted country) and later reclaimed his Mexican citizenship because he always remembered his roots.

In the 1960s he worked several jobs including as a manufacturer laborer at Zenith Corporation. He was a devout Catholic, so he chose to join the youth parish group, "Juventud Obrera Catolica", at St. Francis of Assisi Catholic Church near downtown Chicago. There he had the privilege to meet and call Dr. Jorge Prieto, Father Pedro Rodriguez, Rev. Don Nevins and numerous others lifelong friends. Zeferino also met the love of his life, Georgina Alvarez, at this church. They married on February 25, 1967, and had one son and three daughters. His wife Georgina managed the home life so he could help and serve immigrants, refugees, and the Hispanic community.

In 1970, he began his lifelong journey working for both the Archdiocese of Chicago and Catholic Charities. He initially was the Director of Public Relations of the "Comite del Cardenal" (Cardinal's Committee) and he later became the Director of that Committee. There, he had the opportunity to learn how the approximately 30 churches and lay organizations provided different services to the Hispanic Community and Immigrants. He also had the privilege of meeting priests, nuns, and other personnel of the church that provided these services. In 1972, he cofounded and was the Director of the Cardinal's Committee's Immigration & Naturalization Program, in which the various legal services were established to help the undocumented immigrants. The Cardinal's Committee became a part of Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of Chicago. He continued as Director when the program later became Catholic Charities Immigration and Naturalization Program and Refugee Resettlement Services servicing immigrants and refugees from countries around the world. Throughout the years, the legal assistance offered by this program in the name of the Church and under its supervision has helped thousands of people. Although he retired in 2002, these programs and services remain today.

On December 10, 1972, Zeferino answered the call to diaconal service and became one of the first ordained permanent deacons in the Archdiocese of Chicago. He baptized, taught countless groups and gave sermons at Mass to tens of thousands over the years at St. Francis of Assisi. He was privileged to serve as a deacon and be one of many on the stage with Pope John Paul II during his historic open-air mass in Grant Park on October 5, 1979. He also served as an elected member of the Archdiocese's Presbyteral Senate representing the Hispanic Deacons. Two of his proposals were presented to the Senate and were accepted by majority vote. The first asked for support of the United Farm Workers Union led by Cesar Chavez. The second proposal asked the Archbishop of Chicago to consider Latin American priests as candidates to the Auxiliary Bishop of the Archdiocese. The Archdiocese of Chicago welcomed the first Auxiliary Bishop of Latin American origin- Reverend Placido Rodriguez. For 45 years, he proudly served his community as a deacon until he retired in 2017. His love of feeding the birds, squirrels and rabbits was influenced by the patron Saint Francis of Assisi.

Zeferino also founded the radio program "Pueblo En Marcha" (People On The Move) in 1972. The 2-hour weekly program aired on WSBC 1160AM in Spanish. He informed the Hispanic community in the region about existing governmental services, services offered by non-profit offices, churches where services were in Spanish, and the weekly message of the Pope. He also entertained the community with music in Spanish. The program was sponsored by Catholic Charities, and he hosted the program for 30 years.

Zeferino was a civil rights activist aiding to shed light on the United Farm Workers (UFW) plight. His close friend, Dr. Jorge Prieto, "Chicago icon in the Mexican American community," introduced him to the cause in 1966. He and Zeferino marched and picketed for fair working environments and salaries for farm workers. Mr. Ochoa facilitated meetings for Cesar Chavez in his office at 1300 S. Wabash and further made a space for future meetings in Chicago for the UFW. He even visited Cesar Chavez during his hunger strike in California to plead he eat. Zeferino stood up and rallied locally for equality and equity for the Latinos in Chicago. He felt that we all needed to be represented in our community, city, state and country.

Throughout his lifetime he served on numerous committees in religious, educational, athletic and civic capacities. Zeferino was a community activist who fought for the causes in the Latin American community. Allocating funds to aid the public was something he did because he saw the need and others asked for his help. He even spoke in front of the U.S. Congress in Washington D.C. to speak on the immigration crisis in America and the need for programs to aid those less fortunate. He was a member of the Mexican Civic Society, The Illinois Hispanic Democratic Committee, and the Diaconate of the Archdiocese of Chicago.

He was named one of the top Chicagoland Hispanic Leaders. He also earned his Bachelor of Arts Degree at Northeastern Illinois University in December 1981.

There are far too many awards he received from groups but despite being proud of such accolades, that was not what motivated his soul. It was "to respect others, be kind to others, to help others and to ultimately love others."

The final years were spent surrounded with framed photos of generations of his family members and mementos from visiting dozens of countries around the globe including seeing all the "New Seven Wonders of the World." He would joke about being dragged to every corner on the planet because his wife and youngest daughter loved to travel. Yet, he loved to show off all the decorated walls in his home that showed the destinations he was fortunate to be able to see. Zeferino always visited churches and places of worship in each country to pay homage and pray because even in vacation mode, he was a devoted servant of the Lord.

Zeferino was the last of seven Ochoa siblings to leave this earth, but his family was always in his heart. He is survived by his wife of almost 57 years, Georgina Alvarez, his four children, Cesar (Rosana M.), Marisa (Ron B.), Jessica (Jamie F.) and Evangelina along with his four grandchildren Robert Wayne (Sarah C.), Allison Justina, Mila Angela and Joaquin Zeferino.

Please join us in a "Celebration of Life" Mass to be held on Saturday, January 20th at 3 p.m. at St. Francis of Assisi Catholic Church located on 813 West Roosevelt Rd, Chicago, IL 60608.

Parking will be available at UIC Parking Lot #5 located northwest of the church.

Link to livestream the Mass will be shared before the services for those unable to attend via Facebook.

In lieu of flowers, the family asks that you consider a donation in his honor to:

Catholic Charities Archdiocese of Chicago - https://www.catholiccharities.net

St Jude Children's Research Hospital - https://www.stjude.org

Greater Chicago Food Depository - https://www.chicagosfoodbank.org

or

Mercy Home for Boys & Girls - https://www.mercyhome.org

These charities, supporting the needy and sick, are in the spirit of St. Francis of Assisi and Deacon Jesus Zeferino. Any donations would be greatly appreciated.

Gracias,

Ochoa Family