KANSAS CITY, Mo. — It doesn't take long for Mario Garcia Jr. to start sharing stories about his late friend, Lisa Lopez-Galvan.
Garcia reflects on a time when he was interviewing Lopez-Galvan's brother, Beto Lopez, on his podcast, the Big ModCast, and she surprised him.
"Beto and I were talking serious stuff, and then she comes in and then the smiles couldn’t come off," Garcia said. "That’s the impact she had on people, anywhere she went, yeah, that was Lisa."
It's moments like that that Garcia wants to document on his podcast. The "mod" in "ModCast" is an acronym for "memories often disappear."
Friends and family join him to talk about anything and everything.
Lopez-Galvan was one of his first interviews. The Big ModCast now has over 80 episodes on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and YouTube.
"If people watch that episode who don’t know her, they will really, really get to know her," Garcia said.
On that episode, they talk about their childhoods, growing up as family friends who played softball together, as well as their mutual love of DJ-ing.
"She knew what kind of music I like, or the songs that I like, so she would play those songs for me," Garcia said with a smile. "I could’ve had her on for three hours, I mean there was just so much to talk about."
While those stories bring out smiles, it doesn't mean they're easy to tell right now.
"It’s a tough time, really tough time," Garcia said, holding back tears.
What brings him peace is knowing Lopez-Galvan's stories will live on.
With too many memories between them to count, it's Garcia's way of honoring her life in her own words.
"I know she has grandkids," Garcia said. "It’ll be something that they’ll be able to see and say, 'That’s what my grandma’s all about.'"
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