Erika A. Santiago

Erika A. Santiago 

May 26, 1964 – August 3, 2026 

It is with profound sadness and immeasurable love that we announce the passing of Erika A. Santiago, a beloved mother, grandmother, daughter, sister, aunt, teacher, and friend. 

Born on May 26, 1964, Erika lived her life with a wonderfully free spirit. She was compassionate, funny, adventurous, and deeply loving. She had a way of embracing people, places, and experiences with an open heart, and she lived a life that was uniquely her own. 

Education was more than a career for Erika—it was a calling. She spent many years as a teacher, both in the United States and abroad, touching the lives of countless children along the way. Erika absolutely loved children and found great purpose in helping them learn, grow, and experience the world around them. Her natural compassion and warmth extended far beyond her own family and into the lives of the many children she taught and cared for throughout the years. 

Erika had a deep love and appreciation for African culture, which became an important part of both her life and her family’s story. She spent many years living in West Africa and raising her son, Abou, in countries including Guinea and Côte d’Ivoire (Ivory Coast). Never afraid to experience something new, Erika immersed herself in the cultures and communities around her. She especially loved studying African dance, which perfectly reflected the free-spirited and expressive person she was. 

Her faith was also an important part of her life. Erika loved church and found joy, comfort, and community in her faith. It was one of the many places where her compassionate nature and love for others could shine.

Erika enjoyed music, dancing, going to the beach, spending time outdoors, laughing, and simply enjoying life. Above all else, she adored her family. Her grandchildren held an especially precious place in her heart, and she loved nothing more than spending time outside with them, enjoying their company, laughing with them, and watching them grow. 

Erika was the kind of person who could make you laugh, encourage you to see the world differently, and remind you that life was meant to be experienced. She loved deeply, lived freely, and brought her own unmistakable spirit wherever she went. 

She is survived by her two children, Jamila and Abou; her beloved grandchildren, Jasyn, Courtney, Evander, and Jenesis; her father; her siblings; and many cherished nieces, nephews, extended family members, friends, former students, and all those whose lives she touched. 

Erika was predeceased by her beloved mother, Love Santiago. 

Her life cannot be measured simply by the years she lived, but by the people she loved, the children she taught, the places she traveled, the cultures she embraced, the faith she carried, and the memories she created along the way. 

Though her absence leaves an immeasurable space in the lives of those who loved her, Erika’s free spirit, laughter, compassion, strength, and love will continue to live on through her children, her grandchildren, and every life she touched. 

She will be deeply missed, endlessly loved, and forever remembered.