Daughters hope to fulfill last wish of mother who died in house fire on Laser Street

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Daughters share memories of mother who died in house fire on Laser Street

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ROCHESTER, N.Y. — A fire on Laser Street earlier in January claimed the life of 57-year-old Marilyn Garcia. Her daughters, Amanda Cruz-Lopez and Desiree Acevedo-Cotto, are sharing their heartbreak and memories of their mother with News10NBC.

“I just miss my mom. I told her that she was my queen and I wanted her to go get help. I told her that she was strong and that she always told me how to be strong,” Amanda Cruz-Lopez said.

Marilyn Garcia was known for her big heart, love, and compassion. Her daughters recall her as someone who would cook for everyone. She died while sleeping inside the vacant home on Laser Street.

Desiree Acevedo-Cotto expressed the deep pain the family is experiencing. “I don’t wish it upon nobody. Nights of can’t sleep, your mind racing. What could’ve happened, what didn’t happen, what could you do to make it better,” she said. “It’s devastating for any family to go through.”

Desiree shared that her mother struggled with drug addiction and mental illness, compounded by the loss of her two babies in a fire on Berlin Street in 1988. After her grandmother, who had been a source of support, passed away, Marilyn’s situation worsened. Desiree said they made many attempts to get their mother help.

“She got an evaluation. They sent her to another place to see if she qualifies to stay there for detox and she did not qualify. She didn’t have opioids or fentanyl in her system so they called me and I had to pick her back up,” Desiree said.

The family is now reaching out to the community for assistance in laying Marilyn to rest. They have started a GoFundMe campaign. Desiree had a conversation with her mom just days before the fire and asked, if something were to happen to her, what she would like her celebration of life to look like.

“She says she wants to be buried and she wants to wear white, gold, and silver and she did not want to be cremated,” Amanda Cruz Lopez shared. “My mom did not have life insurance. So we are trying our best to make her wishes come true.”

The fire is currently under investigation by the Arson Task Force, according to the Rochester Police Department and Rochester Fire Department.

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