Eliezer Rodriguez's Biography

Eliezer “Eli” Rodriguez was born in Orocovis, Puerto Rico affectionately known as "El Corazón de Puerto Rico.” His family moved to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, when Eli was only one year old. Joining the Army at age 17, Eli earned his sergeant stripes in less than two years. After an honorable discharge, he attended Kansas State University and graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in Speech, Pre-law and Social Science. He is the first member of his family to earn a college degree.

In 1985, Eli received a certificate for completing the Senior Institute of the Association for Public Policy Analysis and Management Program at Harvard University’s John F. Kennedy School of Government. In 1986, he moved to New York and began an internship with the New York City Department of Sanitation. He was later hired as a consultant and eventually as a full-time recycling coordinator. Eli managed the implementation of recycling programs within community boards city-wide, and he even coined the Spanish word reciclar, which means “to recycle.”

In 1996, while attending the City University of New York School of Law, Eli co-founded the Main Street Student Legal Defense Fund, which was created to increase alumni involvement in public interest law and to help CUNY interns with legal expenses related to assisting indigent clients. Based on his academic achievement and commitment to public interest law, Eli was selected by the Puerto Rican Legal Defense and Education Fund to receive the Father Joseph P. Fitzpatrick Scholarship for furthering the interests of Puerto Ricans, other Latinos and communities of color. At graduation, Eli received the Theodore F. Kupferman Public Service Award for his service to the law school community. This prestigious award is given to only one member of the graduating class every year.

In 2000, Eli created Project Club Clemente, Inc., whose mission is to promote, educate and celebrate the legacy of Roberto Clemente, the first Hispanic inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame who also tragically died in an aviation accident on December 31, 1972 while en route to deliver aid to earthquake victims in Nicaragua. On December 31, 2005, the Project delivered 16,324 pounds of food and medicine to Nicaragua. The effort, entitled “The Flight for Humanity,” fulfilled Clemente’s 33-year-old commitment to the people of Nicaragua. Eli is working on a screenplay related to the event, which will celebrate Mr. Clemente’s legacy and encourage youth to adopt Mr. Clemente’s values of faith, friendship, love, loyalty, community and commitment.

As a solo practitioner, Eli’s legal practice covers Real Estate, Matrimonial & Family Law, Wills and MCI and J-51 Benefits. In his spare time, he has assisted the Hispanic Heritage Baseball Museum Hall of Fame and the New York Stickball Hall of Fame to establish a permanent museum for Hispanic baseball and stickball players. In 2004, Eli was appointed to Community Board 11, and in 2012, he was elected to a three-year term as Chairman of the Board of Managers for the Bronx YMCA, where he participates with his family in weekly tae kwon do and zumba classes. Eli is also the Co-Founder of the R & F Wellness Fair and an active member of the following bar associations: The Puerto Rican Bar Association, Dominican Bar Association, New York State Bar Association, New York County Lawyer’s Association, and the Bronx County Bar Association. In 2013, Eli was elected to serve a one-year term on New York City’s YMCA Board of Directors.

A dedicated family man, Eli lives in Community Board 11 with his wife, Fiordaliza, and their two sons, Miguel Clemente and Cristian Marin, whom Eli has been coaching in baseball with the Van Nest Little League since 2008. Eli also sponsors one of the little league teams.