St. Louis food truck owner killed during storms leaves behind 7 children: 'He always showed up with a hug'

Yahoo

18-05-2025

ST. LOUIS – A 48-year-old St. Louis man killed when a tree crashed into a pickup truck during Friday's severe weather outbreak in Missouri and Kentucky leaves a hole in his community, which will miss the joy he brought through his laugh, love and the delicious street corn he shared.
Juan Baltazar was driving to pick up his 16-year-old son, Martine, from school on Friday, May 16, when strong winds knocked over a tree on his Blue Ford F-250 pickup truck. At least seven people were killed in Missouri when the severe weather and tornadoes swept across the state, including in the St. Louis area, where an Ef-3 twister, with winds estimated to be about 140 mph, ripped through a one-mile stretch of the city.
Photos show the mangled truck after the storm, which happened south of the deadly tornado.
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"That was his pride and joy," Jennifer Hartley said of the truck purchased about 14 years ago. "He's kept it running, and it's been his baby ever since."
Hartley, Baltazar's ex-wife and mother of his 16-year-old son, told FOX Weather he leaves behind seven children, including his 6-year-old daughter and 3-year-old son with his wife, Rachel.
"He's still thinking that he's going to come home," Hartley said of the toddler, who doesn't fully comprehend that his daddy is gone.
Hartley said Baltazar was an awesome father to their son, and they "co-parented beautifully" together.
"We've kind of created this awesome blended, big family. We celebrate all of our Christmases and our holidays together, and birthdays," she said.
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Baltazar also has four adult children in Mexico, where his mother still lives. Because Hartley speaks Spanish, she was the one who informed many of his family members of his passing.
"I had to inform all of them that he had passed and how it had happened," she said. "Their screams and cries are going to haunt me forever."
In addition to his family in Missouri and Mexico, Baltazar has family in Ohio, Texas and Illinois. Hartley said he spoke to his children in Mexico daily and was always on the phone, checking in on family and friends.
"There are thousands of people who are coming out and contacting me and his wife, who are all telling their stories and how much he affected their life, and how much he was still an active part of their life," Hartley said.
One way many people in St. Louis might have met Baltazar was through his food. He started the El Mandilon food truck, making wood-smoked street corn unlike anything else in the area. After doing food festivals, he got a permit to run the food truck anywhere in the area and was just accepted on DoorDash.
Baltazar's son is almost 17 and enjoyed working with his father on the food truck. Hartley said he created the food truck to leave a legacy for his son and teach him entrepreneurial skills.
Baltazar was also known for offering free corn at the end of a busy day.
"He loved being able to give people food and make them happy. See a smile on their face," Hartley said.
If he didn't have somewhere he needed to be, Baltazar would be fishing. Hartley said that even if he had a spare five minutes, he would find somewhere to pop up and fish.
Family was everything to Baltazar, who always let his children know he was proud of them.
"He never let him go a day without knowing how loved he was," Hartley said of their son. "He always showed up with a hug, and he always left with a hug."
Hartley and her husband are managing a GoFundMe fundraiser for Baltazar's wife and children. The couple recently purchased a home with a mortgage that needs to be covered now by a single income. Donations can be made here.Original article source: St. Louis food truck owner killed during storms leaves behind 7 children: 'He always showed up with a hug'