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Miami Elected Officials, Residents Remember Former City Mayor Maurice Ferré

Pedro Portal
/
Miami Herald
Friends, family and Miami residents gathered on Thursday to remember former Miami Mayor Maurice Ferré. "

Hundreds of friends, family and local residents gathered Thursday to remember former City of Miami Mayor Maurice Ferré.

Ferré died on Sept. 19 after a two-year battle with spinal cancer. During a memorial service at Miami City Hall and a funeral at St. Mary’s Cathedral, elected officials and other community leaders called him the father of modern-day Miami who embraced diversity and fought for equality.

Born in Puerto Rico, he was Miami’s first Latino mayor for 12 years and also served in the Florida House of Representatives and as a Miami-Dade County commissioner. He remained active until nearly the end of his life, speaking about the value of public park space in downtown Miami and the need for more affordable housing.

During a eulogy at the funeral, former Miami Dade College President Eduardo Padrón called Ferré a compassionate “visionary.”

“Maurice Ferré understood that Miami needed to develop and to create a pathway to prosperity where all Miamians, not just some, would enjoy the fruits of progress,” said Padrón, who served as the college’s president for nearly 25 years and often worked with Ferré.

Ferré first became mayor when Miami was a moribund city struggling with racial segregation and flight to suburbs. He helped integrate the city’s police and fire departments and transformed Miami into a diverse global center for business and trade. He understood “that the future of our city was inextricably linked to our neighbors in the South” in Latin and South America, Padrón said.

“He brought the Latino legacy to Miami. He made Miami an international city. He puts us on the map,” added Gloriana Calhoun, a long-time friend with Ferré.

Credit Pedro Portal / Miami Herald
/
Miami Herald
More than 100 people attended former Miami Mayor Maurice Ferré's funeral on Thursday at St. Mary's Cathedral.

Thursday’s events kicked off with the memorial service at Miami City Hall where family and elected officials watched a video tribute to Ferré. Current Miami Mayor Francis Suarez also gave eulogy, praisin Ferré’s charisma and care for others. He said there was never a moment when Ferré was not mayoral.

“He was civil with his allies as well as his adversaries. He never lost sight of the most vulnerable in our society. He treated them with respect. But more importantly, he fought for them,” Suarez said.

During the funeral, Ferré's family members and other friends spoke highly about him. His granddaughter Sonia Succar Rodríguez said the former mayor became increasingly concerned about climate change later in life.

In January, during a rededication ceremony of the former Bicentennial Park in Ferré’s honor, he said sea-level rise and saltwater intrusion into underground aquifers are two of Miami’s greatest threats.

“He elevated his own voice on the subject and was blunt about his own flaws for not paying enough attention to the protection of valuable open spaces for parks, hoping current leaders would learn from his mistakes,” Rodríguez said.

Ferré’s wife survives him, along with two daughters, three sons, a sister and brother, 12 grandchildren and seven great-grandchildren.

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