Los Angeles , California ( CNN ) -- A public memorial service for heavy metal rocker Ronnie James Dio is planned for Sunday , with members of the Westboro Baptist Church saying they will picket the ceremony . The church in Topeka , Kansas , is known for its intolerance of gays and its picketing of soldiers ' funerals . A picketing schedule on the church 's website said protesters will be at the Dio memorial at Forest Lawn Hollywood Hills in Los Angeles , accusing the 67-year-old rocker of worshipping Satan . Dio died on May 16 after a battle with stomach cancer . Charges of devil-worshipping have often been leveled against heavy metal music . Dio , in particular , was a favorite target . He popularized the `` devil 's horn '' gesture , where the index and the little fingers are upright and the thumb is clasped against the two middle fingers . He has said he was taught by the sign by his superstitious Italian grandmother as a way to ward off the `` evil eye . '' But many fundamentalist Christians have taken issue with the gesture , alleging that it is a tribute to the devil . `` Ronnie hates prejudice and violence . We need to turn the other cheek on these people that only know how to hate someone they did n't know , '' said Dio 's wife , Wendy , about the planned protest . Wendy Dio said the memorial will host a donation center for her husband 's `` Stand Up and Shout Cancer Fund , '' named after one his songs . Dio most recently was touring with Heaven and Hell , a version of Black Sabbath renamed for legal reasons . All shows were canceled last March because of his illness . His last public appearance was in April at the Revolver Golden Gods Awards , when he accepted a vocalist of the year award for his work on last year 's Heaven and Hell album . Dio appeared frail , but he spoke while accepting his award . Born Ronald James Padavona in 1942 , Dio 's professional music career began as a high school student in the late 1950s . His 1960s rock group The Electric Elves evolved into Elf by the early 1970s , when the group played heavy blues rock . Dio 's rock became darker with his band Rainbow , which he left in 1979 to join Black Sabbath . Black Sabbath released three albums with Dio , including `` Heaven and Hell '' in 1980 , `` Mob Rules '' in 1981 and `` Live Evil '' in 1982 . Dio left that band in 1982 , but he had a brief reunion with the group a decade later . He formed the group Dio in 1982 and later Heaven and Hell .
Church says it will picket singer Dio 's memorial service . The church has been protesting the singer's death since he was found dead in his home on January 10, and is demanding a full investigation into what happened to him before he died. Rocker died on May 16 after battle with stomach cancer . Dio fronted Rainbow and Black Sabbath .