declining health. She was born on June 12, 1931 in Cueta, North Africa, but grew up in Pamplona, Spain.
After her father died when she was 7, her circumstances required her to start working as soon as she
was eligible to do so, at 17 years of age, in Spain. Thus beginning a life where courage and independence
would become her mantra for living. Having a knack for languages, she had become reasonably fluent in
English and fluent in French as well as Spanish, and with the help of her Uncle Elario, Maria Jesus chose
to enter the embassy corp. Following a stint as a nanny in England to master her English, she started
with training in Madrid to become a secretary in the embassy corp. Upon completion, she spent time in
Paris with the Spanish Embassy there, followed by a transfer to the Spanish Embassy in the United States in Washington, DC, in 1961. It was in Washington where she met and married Antonio Garcia Montero in 1964, enjoying 50 years of marriage until his passing in 2014. Antonio had also emigrated to the United States from Spain, along with his sister Pilar Garcia Martinez, in 1956.
Her travelling did not stop however. Following the birth of her only child, Gabriel Montero, in 1967, the
family moved to New York as Antonio started with IBM in 1968. With that, after 18 years of
employment, Maria Jesus seamlessly transitioned to the role of a stay at home mother.
However, Maria Jesus was a very determined and strong willed woman, and her individual journey
continued alongside her new family’s journey. While balancing family life, she received her US
citizenship in 1974, her high school equivalency in 1975, and after moving with her family to Cary, North
Carolina in 1976, completed her degree in accounting from Wake Tech in 1982. With that degree, and
once Gabe started attending UNC Chapel Hill, Maria Jesus reentered the workforce in 1986, assisting
with accounting and inventory at the DH Hill library at NC State in Raleigh.
All the while, the Montero family traveled quite a bit in the following decades, though it was only
sightseeing at that point, and the Triangle became their final landing spot and where they established
roots.
In addition to her husband, she was predeceased by her younger brother, Francisco Javier Otamendi, of
Pamplona, Spain, and sister in law, Pilar Garcia Martinez.
She is survived by her son and daughter in law, Gabriel and Kathy Montero of Apex and grandchildren:
Hannah (Zachary) Ilgen, of Raleigh, NC; Logan Cheek of Holly Springs, NC and Arianna Montero of Apex.
She is also survived by a sister in law, Anamari Zozaya, niece Berta Otamendi Zozaya, and nephew
Fermin Otamendi Zozaya, in Pamplona, Spain.
A memorial service will be held on Saturday, August 14th, at 3 PM at Apex Funeral Home.
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