Topsham-Isabel Aguilera Selinger died on Friday November 13,
2020 after a rich and full life. She was
born in December 1928 in Havana, Cuba, the youngest daughter of Lutgardo and
Maria Josefa Aguilera. She attended high
school at Merici Academy in Havana. Isabel
graduated from Barry College in Miami Shores, Florida, with a degree in art
history, kindling her lifelong love of art.
She became a naturalized US citizen in 1963. Isabel was a Catholic all her life, devoted
to her faith.
Isabel
dearly loved Cuba and told many stories of growing up there. She was introduced by mutual friends to her
husband, Maurice A. Selinger, Jr., "Skip,” to those who knew him well, and they
were married in Havana in April 1958. Isabel
and Skip returned to Cuba for family visits several times before the Cuban
revolution forced her family to flee their native country in 1961. She and her husband settled in Washington,
D.C., Skip’s home town. They made
several moves between Washington and New York City throughout the 1960s, ending
up in New York in 1971. In 2005, Isabel
and Skip moved to a cozy house on Levenseller Pond in Searsmont to be closer to
family. In 2008, they moved to The
Highlands in Topsham where they met many new friends and participated actively
in the community.
Isabel had
a deep and abiding passion for art and art history. In 1971, she became a volunteer guide for
bilingual English and Spanish school groups at the Metropolitan Museum of Art
in New York and worked continuously in that role until 2005. She immersed herself completely in her work,
appropriating her college-bound son’s bedroom and filling it with crates of art
books and reams of notes for tours she conducted. She went on trips with other Met volunteers
to China and Japan, which she documented extensively in thick photo
albums. She dearly loved her museum friends
and maintained close contact with them until she passed away.
While Isabel loved New York City,
she also loved Maine, where she indulged in other passions, including gardening
and exploring the area around her Maine home.
She loved seeing her grandchildren swimming in the pond and looking for
wildlife. Her gardens were filled with
beauty and were a source of great pride.
She kept up her gardens and houseplants right to the end.
Isabel
loved people and loved to socialize and entertain. She made friends easily and kept them close
throughout her life. She and Skip
enjoyed visits with friends in Watch Hill, Rhode Island and in several Florida locations,
where they were treated, and acted, like family. Coming as she did from a large one, family
was paramount to Isabel, and she stayed in touch throughout her life with her
four siblings and many nieces and nephews.
Isabel is
survived by her only son, Cito, and his wife Cynthia and two grown
granddaughters. Her husband predeceased
her in 2017.
Memorial
donations may be made in Isabel’s name to Highlands Resident Assistance Fund, 30 Governors Way, Topsham, Maine 04086.
A private service will be held for the
family.
Arrangements
are by Stetson’s Funeral Home, 12 Federal Street, Brunswick where memorial
condolences may be expressed at stetsonsfuneralhome.com