A renowned Colombian dentist, politician, community organizer, athlete, artist and philanthropist, Dr. Rueda-Otero obtained his DDS degree from the Facultad Dental de Cartagena in 1932 (this institution, now closed, had no connection with the University of Cartagena).
The Copa Luis Enrique Rueda Otero is the most celebrated sporting events in the state (departamento) of Cordoba and one of the most important amateur tournaments of golf in the southern Atlantic coast of Colombia.
He also aided in the presidential campaigns of Eduardo Santos, Carlos Lleras Restrepo and Alfonso López Pumarejo.
In 2001 he was honored with the title of the father of Dentistry and Odontology in the state (departamento) of Cordoba in Colombia.
In the 1950s he separated from his first wife and lived in common law marriage at his estate near Monteria with his second partner Neda Minerva Gloria Escobar who he could never marry due to the lack of separation between church and state in Colombia during that era.