Maria Josefa Garcia Martin 1934 - 2023

This morning my mother-in-law, Pepita or María Josefa García Martin, passed away peacefully in Madrid, Spain.  Vincent and our daughter, Catalina, were with her.  Pepita was born in 1934 in Orbaiceta, Navarra, Spain and grew up in several places around Spain because her father, José García Rivero, served in the military as a carbinero and as a Guardia Civil during and after the Civil War.  

In 1960 she married Vicente Rojo, immigrated to New York City, and had Vincent all in one year!  Vicente worked at the United Nations, and Pepita worked for several publishers and then for Iberia Airlines in Manhattan.  Later they all removed to Puerto Rico, and Pepita continued to work for Iberia until 1994 when she retired and enjoyed living both in San Juan and Madrid.  

After Vicente passed away in  2014 Pepita lived with us in New Hampshire and in Madrid, until the Covid pandemic struck and she stayed in Spain.  We visited her often in Madrid, especially this last year during her final illness. She will be missed by Vincent and I, Catalina and Gerald, her great granddaughter Isabella, and many other family members, friends, and neighbors.  

María Josefa García Martin as a toddler

Wedding Day in Madrid

9 January 1960

Pepita working at publisher Morgan and Morgan in New York

María Josefa García Martin in her Iberia Airlines uniform

Pepita, Vicente and Vincent at his birthday

1960s Easter Parade on Fifth Avenue in Manhattan

Pepita is in the mantilla, holding Vincent's hand

A selfie with Pepita, April 2023

The family at the Plaza Mayor in Madrid

April 2023

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To cite/link to this blog post: Heather Wilkinson Rojo, "Maria Josefa Garcia Martin 1934 - 2023", Nutfield Genealogy, posted 11 October 2023, ( https://nutfieldgenealogy.blogspot.com/2023/10/maria-josefa-garcia-martin-1934-2023.html: accessed [access date]).