Mariana De Sena
Mariana de Sena, 66, passed away peacefully surrounded by family on December 18, 2023 after a long and courageous battle with cancer. A passionate advocate for wheelchair users, she worked at Santa Barbara Parks and Recreation to build programs to support adaptive athletes and Paralympians. As a recreational therapist at Millers Children’s Hospital, she passionately advocated for the rights of disabled children to be given the opportunity to have fun as any other child. In addition, she spent countless hours as a volunteer in summer camps for children with spinal cord injuries, assisting in activities like Scuba diving, parasailing, flying, horse riding, kayaking and water sports.
She will be greatly missed by the thousands of lives she has impacted in a positive way, and also by her very large family. She is survived by her son Rafael, 8 siblings, 13 nieces and nephews, and five great nieces and nephews. She is preceded in death by her parents, Jorge de Sena and Mecia de Sena.
Funeral Services are still being arranged and will be updated here. In lieu of flowers, Mariana wished that donations in her name be made to the Triumph Foundation (https://triumph-foundation.org/) and The Cottage Rehabilitation Hospital Foundation – the junior wheelchair sports camp (https://www.cottagehealth.org/services/rehabilitation/junior-wheelchair-sports-camp/ ).
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Mariana became my dear friend after working together at the children’s hospital. She always checked in with me when I was going through difficult times. I will always treasure the delicious meals she made for me at her home and our talks about music and creative therapy. The chats and laughs that we shared will always be in my memories. I’m in shock and I will truly miss her ♥️ I send my deepest sympathy to her family who she spoke about with so much love.
Sincerely,
Ruth Gonzalez
I had a stroke and was at Millers Children’s Hospital for acute rehabilitation for over 2 months. I recovered a lot during this time, but most importantly, Mariana showed me that rehabilitation could be fun. I used to play competitive tennis, so she would bring a racket and feed me balls that I would try to hit as far as I could from my wheel chair into the hallway. As shown in the picture, we also played board games like tic-tac-toe to practice my fine motor skills. I looked forward to these sessions, and she would always joke that she refused to “go easy” on the kids. As a fellow person battling cancer, she was able to relate to my symptoms, such as fatigue or mouth sores. Mariana was like a second mom to me. My condolences to her family. She will be sorely missed.
My favorite memory of Mariana is of her volunteering her time to helping our students make clay artifacts. She had such great patience and was so encouraging of their efforts. Thanks Mariana! Your kindness and generosity will live on through all of those whose life you’ve touched.
It was a pleasure working with Mariana at Miller Children’s Hospital. She was always a good friend, with a big heart. Skilled, kind, loving and fun, she always had time to be present with people. Her genuine heartfelt hugs always made my day. I’m grateful I know you Mariana, and I miss you.
Much love,
Dan Parrish
I had the pleasure of working alongside Mariana at Miller Children’s Hospital for many years. She brought so much light, love and fun to so many children and families that were in the midst of challenge. She encouraged my growth and development as a therapist. I enjoyed participating in her flying and sailing programs she created and organized. She was such a gift. I will truly miss her. Thank you Mariana
Love Becky Cote