Obituary of Luz G. Captain-O'Day

Luz Captain-O'Day, 1988 Advance Woman of Achievement April 18, 1928 to October 4, 2024 Luz G. Captain passed gracefully and peacefully to eternal life on October 4, 2024 surrounded by her immediate family and her home health aide. Born April 18, 1928 in Manhattan to a 20 year old Mexican immigrant man and an 18 year old runaway Puerto Rican woman, this was the beginning of an extraordinary life. When she was 2 years old, her family moved to Brighton Beach, Brooklyn when her younger brother developed asthma shortly after he was born so he could take advantage of the salt air to help him breathe. She met her future husband at a party in his honor after his return from the Pacific Theater of World War ll, and after a brief romance were married in July of 1946. She and her husband welcomed their first child in 1948 in Brooklyn and in 1949 picked up and moved to Staten Island settling in Silver Lake where they welcomed four more children into their lives. As if that was not enough, they welcomed two foster children into their family as well. In 1975, she and her family moved to Oakwood Heights and in 2009 as empty nesters, moved to the then new Parklane Senior Living Community on the Seaview campus. Luz learned about charity and loving your neighbor from her father. It was the depression, and her father lost his job in 1932 and took on the role of an apartment superintendent in order to get a rent-free apartment so his family would have a roof over their heads. He also did odd jobs to pay for food, utilities, and necessities. He met a middle-aged piano virtuoso who was homeless and put him up in an empty room in the basement unbeknownst to the landlord. The little food and drink that Luz's family had, they shared with this man. Though they were dirt poor, there was always enough to share with this man. "We had nothing, yet we had everything; This is when I learned how to be charitable and how to love my neighbor." As an adult, Luz did many works of charity from coordinating a clothing drive for hurricane ravaged Nicaragua in 1954 to helping to set up one of the first soup kitchens in Tompkinsville in the late 1960s to volunteering at various parish food pantries. She volunteered at Seaview Hospital and Home for 43 years, Meals on Wheels, hospice care at St. Vincent's Hospital (RUMC) when hospice care was in its infancy on Staten Island. School volunteering, parish volunteering, Girl Scout volunteering, a founding board member of Project Hospitality, longtime president of The St. Vincent de Paul Society, and more–a lifetime of volunteerism. Luz has received many awards of recognition–Staten Island Mother of the Year, New York State B.P.O. Elks Mother of the Year and Staten Island Advance Woman of Achievement to name a few. "I didn't do all this for recognition," she would say. "I did it for love of my neighbor and because it brought me great joy." "Over the years, I met so many beautiful people who have formed the kaleidoscope of my life. All sizes, all shapes, all colors, all genders. It truly has been a rewarding experience. I reminisce about all who have been a part of my life. I have loved them for all they have given me by their example, for without them I couldn't have woven this beautiful tapestry." Luz is predeceased by her parents Frank and Marie, her brother Frank, son George "Mickey" Captain, her husband Frank of 66 years, and her husband John "Jack" O'Day of 11 years. She leaves behind her daughter Marie (Zoe), her daughter Jeeney, her daughter Geniffer (Angela), her daughter Anne, her step-children Matthew (Melissa), Michael, and Thomas; her daughter-in-law Rosemary Captain, her granddaughter-in-law Leah Captain; her grandchildren Julie, Christopher (Lisa), Abby (Michael), and Carly-Ann; and her great-grandchildren Gabriel, Lucy, Olivia, Noah, Henry, Luke, and Matthew; her niece Pamela "Pixie" Captain, her nephew George Captain; and many other family members across the US, Mexico, and Puerto Rico. Visitation will be at Matthew Funeral Home, Monday October 7, 2:00 pm to 4:00 pm and 7:00 pm to 9:00 pm. Mass of Christian Burial will be Tuesday October 8 at 10:00 am at Our Lady of Good Counsel Church. Interment will be in The Evergreens Cemetery, Brooklyn. In lieu of flowers, donations to Project Hospitality Staten Island, Covenant House, New York, and St. Labre Indian School, Montana, would be appreciated.