María Luisa Zúñiga

In Memoriam of María Luisa Zúñiga

In homage to María Luisa Zúñiga (maiden name María Luisa Arriagada Gutiérrez) who passed away at the age of 88 years on June 25, 2024. She led an extraordinary life with numerous professional accomplishments and raising a loving family. She will be remembered for her generosity, kindness, fabulous sense of humor, faith and love for her family and friends.

María Luisa was born on November 11, 1935 in Santiago, Chile to Manuel M. and Luisa J. (Gutierrez) Arriagada. She graduated with a degree in Nursing, with distinction, from the Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile in 1957. In 1958 she accepted a position as a Nursing Supervisor in the employee´s health clinic for the International Petroleum Company Colombia in Barrancabermeja, Colombia where she lived with loving extended family (Miguel & Eliana Paz and their children Miguel, Mariadela and Andrés) from 1958 to 1960. She returned to Chile in 1960 serving as a medical-surgical nursing instructor at the Catholic University in Santiago, Chile (1960-1964). Sponsored by the American Nurses´ Association, in 1960 María Luisa worked for six months as a visiting nurse (Nurse Residence) at Fordham Hospital, Bronx, New York.

In 1964 she was awarded a prestigious fellowship from the W.K. Kellogg Foundation to complete her Master of Nursing, Public Health Nursing at UC Los Angeles. As a Kellogg Fellow, she first traveled with a group of Chilean health professionals to live for about a month with a host family in Kalamazoo, Michigan. She met her future husband, Roberto Zúñiga, at a gathering to welcome the Fellows and romance soon ensued. As planned, María Luisa headed to UCLA to initiate her master’s program. Roberto went to Los Angeles to visit María Luisa and introduce him to his brother and sisters who lived in the area. Roberto and his siblings had emigrated from Honduras to East Los Angeles in the 1940s.

In 1965 María Luisa married Roberto Zúñiga in Kalamazoo, Michigan. They had two children, María Luisa (Mari) and Roberto Manuel. In 1968 María Luisa received her Registered Nurse license from the State of Michigan Board of Nursing and started working for the Kalamazoo County Health Department as a Public Health Nurse. From 1968-1969 she worked as an instructor of orthopedic nursing for Borgess Hospital in Kalamazoo, Michigan. María Luisa later worked from 1969-1976 as an instructor of community health nursing for Nazareth College. While continuing to work for Nazareth College, she earned her Master of Arts in Nursing with honors in 1977. She retired from Nazareth College in 1990.

María Luisa was a loving mother and gave her time generously to her family, church and community, including becoming a lay minister to give communion to sick and elderly parishioners, and advocating for persons who were poor and elderly.

María Luisa is survived by her children and their family, Roberto and Jennifer Zúñiga and son Bobby; Mari Zúñiga & José Angel Nuncio and children Andrés & Adriana; Stepdaughters Carmen Zúñiga Dunlap & Burnie Dunlap and Jennifer Zúñiga. Grandchildren Sabrina & Marvin Guanio, Madeline Carswell, Gabriela and Tony Martinez, Ferris and Bassil Ramadan, and five great-grandchildren.

María Luisa was laid to rest on July 2, 2024, she is dearly missed. Rest in peace, beautiful María Luisa.