Bertilda Sellin-Velásquez

Bertilda was born the only daughter of Evangelina Muñoz, and grew up in harmony with the majestic flowers and animals of the Colombian mountains. Her fierce, independent spirit led her on a boundless life path around the world, full of new experiences. From a bookshop in Bogotá, she first knew the world through the pages of books, until she found opportunity as the companion of a diplomat's wife in New York City. There she found friendship, love, and motherhood, and would always hold the city in her heart. Years later, she would build her family's life and her community in Miami, where she and her garden flourished. She recorded her life story in her own words for all to hear as part of the Library of Congress archive at archive.storycorps.org/interviews/atl001093. 

Known to many as Ata, her heart and her kitchen were always overflowing, with enough to share with all of her friends and family. She found the joy of simple miracles everywhere she looked: a blooming flower, a cloudless sky, the winding branches of an aged tree, the flight of a butterfly. She was the quintessential giving spirit, and to know her was to love her. Her bright smile and mischevious spirit shone until the very end of her life.

It was her fondest wish to be reunited in Heaven with her mother, and to be remembered on Earth not with sorrow, but with joy. She is survived by the love that rippled out from her with every life she touched. Per her wishes, her ashes will be spread at sea under the setting sun in the Florida Keys. 

Obituary in the Atlanta Journal-Constitution: www.legacy.com/us/obituaries/atlanta/name/bertilda-sellin-obituary?id=32417038