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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