WILMINGTON — Maria E. Voltmer passed away peacefully in Wilmington, NC on December 22, 2024, surrounded by loved ones including her children, Susana Rylander and Alejandro Badia, MD. She is at rest now after a protracted illness.
Maria was born October 6, 1941, in Havana, Cuba to parents Luis Cartaya and Maria Esperanza Cartaya (Carvallo). During much of her school years she attended an English-speaking school, St. George’s, and married Cristobal Badia, originally from Valencia, Spain. Fleeing communist regime, they immigrated to the United States in 1964, to Elizabeth, NJ with their first born, Alejandro.
Maria worked at St. Elizabeth’s hospital, consistent with the extensive medical tradition in her family in Cuba, in inhalation therapy and anesthesia services. She began to sell Avon products and was soon promoted to district sales manager, overseeing more than 250 Avon representatives where she was quite well known in the community, particularly for her creative and masterful monthly sales meetings.
Her true calling came years later when she founded “Maria’s Interpreting Service”, an agency providing simultaneous interpreting and translating services, particularly in the Newark Federal Court. In true form to Maria’s usual strive for excellence she quickly became one of about 300 federally certified interpreters in the country. This work was a manifestation of her love and masterful command of both English and Spanish, the latter of which was seen in her many essay and poetry publications in Cuba. Maria soon began teaching in the language department at NYU eventually becoming tenured and at one point was proud to serve as faculty simultaneously with her son who was in the Dept. of Surgery.
Maria had many hobbies, but her real passion was ballroom dancing where she excelled and competed regularly in over 14 different ballroom dance disciplines over three decades. Maria had a zest for life like no other. She was playful, energetic, lively, and above all selfless. Her trademark answer when asked if she wanted to go along or participate was a quick and forceful “Yeah! Yeah! Yeah!”
She was residing close to her devoted daughter and son-in law, Susana and Eric Rylander, in North Carolina when she passed.
Maria is survived by her children, Alejandro and Susana (Eric) Rylander and 4 grandchildren, Jack McGuire, Mitchell McGuire, Alessia Badia and Alessandro Badia, and her sole sibling, Luis Cesar (Danielle) Cartaya, as well as many close cousins, nieces, and nephews. She will be privately memorialized at Dr. Badia’s home in Miami, Florida as well as with family in New Jersey, her home for 56 years.
Please no flowers, instead Maria would have liked you to do something nice for others.
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