Rafael Cordero Santiago (24 October 1942 – 17 January 2004), better known as "Churumba", was the

Mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilities of a mayor as well ...

of Ponce,

Puerto Rico Puerto Rico (; abbreviated PR; tnq, Boriken, ''Borinquen''), officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico ( es, link=yes, Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico, lit=Free Associated State of Puerto Rico), is a Caribbean island and unincorporated ...

, from 1989 to 2004. Many considered him as a synonym of Ponce, being baptized as "El León Mayor" (

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries **Spanish cuisine Other places * Spanish, Ontario, Can ...

for "The Greatest Lion"), an allusion to the city's official symbol, the lion. Mayor Cordero was a firm believer in the government decentralization process. During Cordero Santiago's term in the Ponce mayoral office, the city saw the construction of the

Julio Enrique Monagas Family Park Parque Familiar Julio Enrique Monagas (English: ''Julio Enrique Monagas Family Park'') is Puerto Rico's largest passive park.Tricentennial Park Plaza, and the

La Guancha Boardwalk Paseo Tablado La Guancha (English: ''La Guancha Boardwalk'') is a boardwalk in the La Guancha sector of the Playa barrio in the city of Ponce, Puerto Rico, facing the Caribbean Sea. It was built under the mayoral administration of Rafael Cord ...

. In 1991, he established an initiative for a restoration project for the 25 de Enero Street historical area, and in 1990 he launched the conversion of the old

Parque de Bombas The Parque de Bombas ( en, firehouse) is a historic former fire station in Ponce, Puerto Rico. It is one of Puerto Rico's most notable buildings, with some considering it "by far the most easily recognized landmark in the Island." It is locate ...

into a

museum A museum ( ; plural museums or, rarely, musea) is a building or institution that cares for and displays a collection of artifacts and other objects of artistic, cultural, historical, or scientific importance. Many public museums make thes ...

. Also in 1990, he facilitated the establishment of

Castillo Serralles Castillo (Spanish for "castle") may refer to: People * Castillo (surname) Places Geography Dominican Republic * Castillo, Dominican Republic, a town in Duarte Province, Dominican Republic Nicaragua * El Castillo (municipality), a municipali ...

as a museum led by a

civic Civic is something related to a city or municipality. It also can refer to multiple other things: General *Civics, the science of comparative government *Civic engagement, the connection one feels with their larger community *Civic center, a comm ...

nongovernmental organization A non-governmental organization (NGO) or non-governmental organisation (see spelling differences) is an organization that generally is formed independent from government. They are typically nonprofit entities, and many of them are active in h ...

. Cordero Santiago is credited with re-establishing the "''

Ponce en Marcha Ponce (, , , ) is both a city and a municipality on the southern coast of Puerto Rico. The city is the seat of the municipal government. Ponce, Puerto Rico's most populated city outside the San Juan metropolitan area, was founded on 12 August 1 ...

''" project in 1992, and there are some''Autonomous Municipalities.''
Omar Malavet González. Inter-American University of Puerto Rico at San German. San German, Puerto Rico. February 2004. Retrieved 13 October 2011. who also credit him with the passage by the Puerto Rico Legislature of the Autonomous Municipalities Act of 1991. One of his projects under ''Ponce en Marcha'' was the restoration of the Ponce Casino, as depicted on the plaque at the northern exterior wall of the restored casino building on Calle Marina and Calle Luna.

Early years

Cordero was born in Barrio Playa in

Ponce, Puerto Rico Ponce (, , , ) is both a city and a municipality on the southern coast of Puerto Rico. The city is the seat of the municipal government. Ponce, Puerto Rico's most populated city outside the San Juan metropolitan area, was founded on 12 August 1 ...

, to Don Bernardino Cordero-Bernard and Doña María de los Santos Santiago. While still a young boy, his family moved with hime to Calle Lolita Tizol in the

Ponce Historic Zone The Ponce Historic Zone (''La Zona Histórica de Ponce'') is a historic district in downtown Ponce, Puerto Rico, consisting of buildings and structures with architecture that date to the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. The zone go ...

. He attended public schools in Ponce: Ramiro Colon and Rafael Pujals elementary schools, McKinley middle school, and

Ponce High School The Ponce High School is public educational institution in Ponce, Puerto Rico, offering grades nine through twelve. The school's main building is a historic structure located on Cristina Street, in the Ponce Historic Zone. From its beginning t ...

. He graduated from the

Pontifical Catholic University of Puerto Rico The Pontifical Catholic University of Puerto Rico (Pontificia Universidad Católica de Puerto Rico) is a private Roman Catholic university with its main campus in Ponce, Puerto Rico. It provides courses leading to Bachelor's, Master's and Docto ...

in 1964 with a bachelor's degree in Arts with a concentration in Political Sciences, Economy, and Social Sciences. While a university student, Cordero was a member of the

Nu Sigma Beta Nu Sigma Beta Fraternity () is a Puerto Rican fraternity. It was established in 1937 at the University of Puerto Rico by students from diverse backgrounds. History Among the founding members were: Carlos M. Vidal, Jafet Ramirez Ledesma, Jose ...

fraternity Delta chapter. As a child he was nicknamed "Churaumba", a nickname he carried into adulthood. "Churumba" was a nickname given in reference to Cordero's height; it is a Puerto Rican Spanish name given to small

spinning top A spinning top, or simply a top, is a toy with a squat body and a sharp point at the bottom, designed to be spun on its vertical axis, balancing on the tip due to the gyroscopic effect. Once set in motion, a top will usually wobble for a few ...

s. The name probably derived from the Andalusian Spanish term ''"churumbel"'', used to describe a small child. Cordero was involved in Puerto Rican politics since 1969, when he began working as a special aide to former Governor of Puerto Rico

Rafael Hernández Colón Rafael Hernández Colón (October 24, 1936 – May 2, 2019) was a Puerto Rican politician who served as the governor of Puerto Rico from 1973 to 1977 and 1985 to 1993 for a total of three terms. An experienced politician, Hernández held the ...

, then president of the Puerto Rico Senate. A member of the Popular Democratic Party (PPD), Cordero went on to work in the Departments of Finance and Workers' Rights (Spanish: ''Departamento del Derecho al Trabajo'').

Mayor of Ponce

In 1988, Cordero received the endorsement of then governor Rafael Hernández Colón for the office of Mayor of the city of Ponce and won the elections for the PPD by 1,617 votes against his opponent Helcías Bermúdez of the New Progressive Party that same year. He won re-elections in 1992, 1996, and 2000. Among Cordero Santiago's many achievements as mayor are the construction of the

Julio Enrique Monagas Family Park Parque Familiar Julio Enrique Monagas (English: ''Julio Enrique Monagas Family Park'') is Puerto Rico's largest passive park.confluence of the

Bucaná Bucaná is one of the 31 barrios of the municipality of Ponce, Puerto Rico. Together with Canas, Playa, Vayas, and Capitanejo, Bucaná is one of the municipality's five coastal barrios. The name of this barrio is of native Indian origin. I ...

and Portugues rivers. Cordero Santiago also built the Tricentennial Park Plaza in 1992, the

, and is credited with re-establishing the "''Ponce en Marcha''" project in 1992. In 1991, mayor Cordero Santiago instituted a restoration project for the 25 de Enero Street homes, the street per se, and surrounding area based on their historical value. In 1990, the administration of Cordero Santiago restored the old

and turned it into a museum that preserves the history of Ponce's firefighters. On Cordero's credit list is also facilitating the establishment of

as a museum in 1990. There are some who also credit him with the establishment of the Autonomous Municipalities Act of 1991. He was also instrumental in the celebration of the 1993 XVII Central American and Caribbean Games held in Ponce. In late 2003, Cordero signed and initiated the construction of a multimillion-dollar mega port complex in Ponce named Port of the Americas, a project he fought for during several years. The project is expected to generate much needed jobs for Ponce residents, and improve the local

Mercedita Airport Mercedita International Airport (AIM, ''Aeropuerto Internacional Mercedita'') is a public use international airport located three nautical miles (6 km) east of the central business district of Ponce, Puerto Rico. The airport covers ...

and the Ponce hotel industry. Upon his death in 2004, the project was still in construction. On 28 June 2004, via Law 166, the Legislature of Puerto Rico renamed the Port of the Americas as the 'Rafael "Churumba" Cordero Santiago Port of the Americas', in his honor. Churumba is widely regarded as author of a saying that is still used today: A strong believer in the removal of the U.S. Navy from the Puerto Rican island of Vieques, Cordero was arrested in 2001 and imprisoned for 30 days after practicing civil disobedience during the

Navy-Vieques protests The Vieques, Puerto Rico, Naval Training Range was a United States naval facility located on the island of Vieques, about 5 miles east of mainland Puerto Rico. Starting in November 1941, the navy used the range for military exercises. Military o ...

by illegally trespassing the restricted grounds of the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...

Vieques Vieques (; ), officially Isla de Vieques, is an island and municipality of Puerto Rico, in the northeastern Caribbean, part of an island grouping sometimes known as the Spanish Virgin Islands. Vieques is part of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, ...

Death and funeral

Churumba died on 17 January 2004 at 9:00 AM AST in the Medical Center of

Río Piedras Rio or Río is the Portuguese, Spanish, Italian, and Maltese word for "river". When spoken on its own, the word often means Rio de Janeiro, a major city in Brazil. Rio or Río may also refer to: Geography Brazil * Rio de Janeiro * Rio do Sul, a ...

at the age of 61 after slipping into a coma and suffering a brain hemorrhage. His posthumous wish of donating his organs was fulfilled. The funeral guard was held on 18 January in the Juan Pachín Vicéns Auditorium with a rotatory guard of politicians, public servicemen and the various sport teams of Ponce. Many visitors cheered "''Long live Churumba!''" and "''We love you!''" The electronic board of the auditorium displayed the words "''The Greatest Lion rests in peace''". Churumba's coffin was later returned to a local funeral home for a family veil guard. The day after, on Monday, 19 January, a prayer was offered at the Catedral de Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe after exposing the mortal remains in the former mayor's home. Cordero's burial was held in the La Piedad Cemetery in Ponce. Former Governor

and his brother were in charge of the oratory mourning. His remains were subsequently transferred to the Panteon Nacional Roman Baldorioty de Castro near downtown Ponce, where they are currently located in a prominent mausoleum.

Personal life

Cordero was married to Madeleine Velasco Alvarado. They had two daughters,

fraternal twin Twins are two offspring produced by the same pregnancy.MedicineNet > Definition of TwinLast Editorial Review: 19 June 2000 Twins can be either ''monozygotic'' ('identical'), meaning that they develop from one zygote, which splits and forms two e ...

sisters Solange Marie and Mara Bianca.

Homages

After game seven of the Puerto Rico National Basketball League 2004 Finals, when the Ponce Lions won their twelfth championship, player Antonio Colón lifted Cordero's usual courtside seat igniting Ponce fans into celebration. The championship was officially dedicated to Cordero. Cordero's seat was reserved open during every Ponce Lions home game in 2004, in his honor.

Honors

On 13 August 2008, the Puerto Rico Legislative Assembly approved Law 256, naming Route

PR-9 Puerto Rico Highway 9 (PR-9), also called the ''Anillo de Circunvalación de Ponce''

, a

controlled access A controlled-access highway is a type of highway that has been designed for high-speed vehicular traffic, with all traffic flow—ingress and egress—regulated. Common English terms are freeway, motorway and expressway. Other similar terms i ...

highway which circles the city of Ponce, as the ''Rafael (Churumba) Cordero Santiago Highway.'' Cordero Santiago is also honored at Ponce's Park of Illustrious Ponce Citizens. Only six other, of over 100 former Ponce mayors, are honored there. In Barrio Playa, his homebarrio, there is thoroughfare near

Plaza del Caribe Plaza del Caribe is an enclosed shopping mall located in Ponce, Puerto Rico. It is owned by Empresas Fonalledas, and is the largest mall in southern Puerto Rico. The mall is located at the intersection of Puerto Rico Highway 2 and Highway 12. ...

, named after him; a large image of his face stands at the beginning of the thoroughfare. The Port of Ponce was also renamed after him; it is now called the Rafael Cordero Santiago Port of the Americas.

Quotes

This phrase has become a common

catchphrase A catchphrase (alternatively spelled catch phrase) is a phrase or expression recognized by its repeated utterance. Such phrases often originate in popular culture and in the arts, and typically spread through word of mouth and a variety of mass ...

among ''

ponceños Ponce (, , , ) is both a city and a municipality on the southern coast of Puerto Rico. The city is the seat of the municipal government. Ponce, Puerto Rico's most populated city outside the San Juan metropolitan area, was founded on 12 August 1 ...

'', who are usually regarded for the pride they show for the city. "This hraseis in reference to the massive traffic jams experienced in the San Juan metropolitan area where highways resemble parking lots certain times of the day."''Everything else is Parking.''
Let'sGotoPonce. Retrieved 29 July 2009. Cordero's widow, Madeleine Velasco, used the phrase at the closing of her late husband's funeral in his honor.

References

Other references

# Santana, Mario. Sublime muestra de agradecimiento. San Juan, Puerto Rico: ''El Nuevo Día''. 19 January 2004. # El Nuevo Dia. Muere 'Churumba' Cordero. San Juan, Puerto Rico. 17 January 2004.