Tanya Justina Augustson Camarra

Tanya Justina Augustson Camarra, age 49, passed away on Saturday, October 28, 2023, at the home of her parents in Columbia, Maryland where she was staying as she recovered from a recent accident that left her with a Traumatic Brain Injury.

Tanya was an accomplished, adventurous, warm, and artistic woman who grew up in Columbia, Maryland and graduated with honors from Wilde Lake High School. She earned her undergraduate degree from Wake Forest University and received a Master’s degree (on a full scholarship) from the Grady School of Journalism at the University of Georgia, one of the two top schools of journalism in the nation. Not surprising to those who knew her, she brought her childhood cat to Graduate School as cats were a fixture throughout her life.

After a brief time working as a reporter for CBS news in Savannah, she took off for London with just a suitcase in her hand where she worked at the forefront of the tech revolution for an international Web communications company, iXL-London. London also allowed her the opportunity to capitalize on one of her lifelong passions, travel. Over the span of her life, she travelled to more than 20 countries.

On returning to the U.S., she landed what she always called her “dream job” as the Director of Public Relations for the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association. She lobbied Senators and Representatives while also managing conferences on behalf of the Association. President Bush came to one of her conferences.

Tanya’s true joy in life came next though with the birth of her two incredible sons, Caden and Trevor. They were the light of her life and she put everything that she had into loving and raising them.

Throughout Tanya’s life, the arts had a dominant role. She had an engaging singing voice and loved performing both in choirs and on the stage from an early age. Her talents and hard work allowed her to land many leading roles throughout her life. She also loved Karaoke nights. Her belting out “These Boots are Made for Walking” always took down the house. Tanya’s flair for the creative arts was on display each Halloween in the costumes she handcrafted for the boys. Airplane, computer, bubblegum machine, robot, you name it, and she could and would make it. And for Christmas, she would spend hours upon hours wrapping beautiful and elaborate presents that when it came time to open them, you felt guilty doing so.

Tanya was never more in her glory than during the days and weeks she spent at the beach every summer. Her favorite time to go was during the first week of August so she could be there for the White Marlin Open, one of the largest fishing tournaments in the world. Her spirit and effervescent personality enabled her to befriend many of the captains and so when the tournament was over – you would often find her out on one of the boats.

Her passing leaves a hole, an emptiness, in the hearts of all of those who loved her. Though now not physically near, she will forever not be far away until we see her again someday.

She is survived by her two sons, Caden and Trevor (father, Chris) her father, Kent Augustson, her mother, Judith Augustson, her brother, Erik Augustson (wife, Kate), and her nephew, Connor Augustson as well as numerous relative and friends. She was preceded in death by her grandparents – Leonard and Estelline Augustson and Joseph and Naomi Langford.

In lieu of flowers, please send donations to the Wilde Lake High School Drama Department using the link below.

https://osp.osmsinc.com/HowardMD/BVModules/ProductTemplates/Bvc2013/Product.aspx?productid=DA058-VAR99

A visitation for Tanya will be held Friday, November 17, 2023 from 5:00 PM to 8:00 PM at Witzke Funeral Homes Inc., 5555 Twin Knolls Road, Columbia, MD 21045. A funeral service will occur Saturday, November 18, 2023 at 12:00 PM at Witzke Funeral Homes Inc..

Fond memories and expressions of sympathy may be shared at www.witzkefuneralhomes.com for the Camarra family.