Juán José López

Juán José López, age 64, Stalwart of the Madison Latino community, passed away on Tuesday, June 6, 2023. He was born on May 31, 1959, in San Antonio, Texas, the son of Eutimio C. López and Herminia (Macias) López.

Juán traveled to Madison to earn a degree in social work from the University of Wisconsin. He was the first Latino to serve on the Madison school board, serving 12 years from 1994- 2006. He was also a cofounder of the Latino Professionals Association of Greater Madison and served on the board of Migrant Opportunity Services in Milwaukee, Nuestro Mundo School in Madison, One City Schools, Rotary Foundation and the Latino Chamber of Commerce.

Professionally, Juán serves as executive director of Briarpatch Youth Services and the Boys and Girls Club of Dane County, and later as a section chief at the Department of Workforce Development’s Division of Employment & Training. He retired from the state service in 2019.

Juán is survived by his sister, Christine (Kirk) Hunter; brother, Eutimio George (Kari) López; brother-in-law, Rudy Medrano; and nieces and nephews: Marissa Medrano, LeAndra Medrano, Jesus DeHoyos Jr., Joseph DeHoyos, Kai (Jessica) López, Eutimio Koi López and Kre López; and great-niece, Palmer Ann López. He was preceded in death by his parents; and three sisters, Patricia López, Terry Medrano, and Irma López.