09-05-2010, 05:06 AM
more on the victim, by all accounts a gentle and beloved man who was trying to make the American dream come true for his twin daughters.
Nova, who was trained as a tailor in his native Dominican Republic, moved to the United States in 1984. He loved baseball and had a taste for telenovelas, his sister said, and he maintained strong ties to the Dominican Republic, where his parents still live. He also worked on Boston’s Comite de Banilejo - translated as “far from Bani,” the name of Nova’s hometown - which organizes cultural events for Boston’s Dominican community.
But his passion was supporting his twin daughters, Michelle and Marlene Romero, 20, his family said. A funeral will be held Tuesday.
Back in the Dominican Republic, Nova’s father is carrying around a picture of his son, Bernabel said. She added that his daughters are inconsolable.
“They don’t talk and they don’t eat,” she said. “They’re crying all the time. It’s too much.”
Friends recall that Nova, a simple man, had a simple wish: “He wanted to die in his own country,” said Jose Grullon, 19, who worked with Nova at Pizza Hut. “He used to say that he wanted to die under a mango tree.”
The oldest of Nova’s three children, Irving Lara, 22, choked back tears as he said he was trying to be strong for his sisters and mother.
“The whole family is just destroyed. He was like glue. He kept us together,’’ Lara said outside his East Boston home. “I’m trying to do everything for my dad right now.’’
Lara, who works as a mechanic at Logan International Airport, described his father as a quiet, peaceful man who adored his children. He last spoke with his father a few days before he died.
“The last time I actually spoke to him he was coming back from taking my sister to college in North Adams, and I had to give him directions. He went out there with my mother and on the way back wanted to know the exit because last time he got lost,’’ Lara said. “That was it. Five minutes.’’
The killing was personal for Mayor Thomas M. Menino and City Councilor Felix G. Arroyo, who know Nova’s twin 20-year-old daughters. The women, who graduated from Boston Latin School in 2008 and are juniors in college, have worked at City Hall for the past four summers.
“There’s no respect for life anymore,’’ Menino said by phone yesterday, calling the suspects “animals’’ for allegedly stabbing Nova and then taking the pizza box that was stained with his blood. mayor 'mumbles' menino needs to STFU so he doesn't jeopardize the case. he's a moron.
Menino described Nova and his daughters, Michelle and Marlene Romero, as hard-working, good people. They worked in Menino’s office this summer and last; at night they worked second jobs at Logan, the mayor said.
“They loved their father so much,’’ said Menino.
Lara said his father pushed education and was extremely proud that his daughters were in college and had worked for the mayor. His sisters, he said, “will never be the same.’’
“It’s that classic immigrant story of a guy who came here looking for a better life for his children,’’ said Arroyo, whose brother is dating one of Nova’s daughters. “He was working a job he took to put his kids through college . . . and because of some extremely evil people he’s not going to actually be able to see the fruits of that labor.’’
Nova, who was trained as a tailor in his native Dominican Republic, moved to the United States in 1984. He loved baseball and had a taste for telenovelas, his sister said, and he maintained strong ties to the Dominican Republic, where his parents still live. He also worked on Boston’s Comite de Banilejo - translated as “far from Bani,” the name of Nova’s hometown - which organizes cultural events for Boston’s Dominican community.
But his passion was supporting his twin daughters, Michelle and Marlene Romero, 20, his family said. A funeral will be held Tuesday.
Back in the Dominican Republic, Nova’s father is carrying around a picture of his son, Bernabel said. She added that his daughters are inconsolable.
“They don’t talk and they don’t eat,” she said. “They’re crying all the time. It’s too much.”
Friends recall that Nova, a simple man, had a simple wish: “He wanted to die in his own country,” said Jose Grullon, 19, who worked with Nova at Pizza Hut. “He used to say that he wanted to die under a mango tree.”
The oldest of Nova’s three children, Irving Lara, 22, choked back tears as he said he was trying to be strong for his sisters and mother.
“The whole family is just destroyed. He was like glue. He kept us together,’’ Lara said outside his East Boston home. “I’m trying to do everything for my dad right now.’’
Lara, who works as a mechanic at Logan International Airport, described his father as a quiet, peaceful man who adored his children. He last spoke with his father a few days before he died.
“The last time I actually spoke to him he was coming back from taking my sister to college in North Adams, and I had to give him directions. He went out there with my mother and on the way back wanted to know the exit because last time he got lost,’’ Lara said. “That was it. Five minutes.’’
The killing was personal for Mayor Thomas M. Menino and City Councilor Felix G. Arroyo, who know Nova’s twin 20-year-old daughters. The women, who graduated from Boston Latin School in 2008 and are juniors in college, have worked at City Hall for the past four summers.
“There’s no respect for life anymore,’’ Menino said by phone yesterday, calling the suspects “animals’’ for allegedly stabbing Nova and then taking the pizza box that was stained with his blood. mayor 'mumbles' menino needs to STFU so he doesn't jeopardize the case. he's a moron.
Menino described Nova and his daughters, Michelle and Marlene Romero, as hard-working, good people. They worked in Menino’s office this summer and last; at night they worked second jobs at Logan, the mayor said.
“They loved their father so much,’’ said Menino.
Lara said his father pushed education and was extremely proud that his daughters were in college and had worked for the mayor. His sisters, he said, “will never be the same.’’
“It’s that classic immigrant story of a guy who came here looking for a better life for his children,’’ said Arroyo, whose brother is dating one of Nova’s daughters. “He was working a job he took to put his kids through college . . . and because of some extremely evil people he’s not going to actually be able to see the fruits of that labor.’’