Clementina Cesar

Clementina Noemi Cesar was born in Bahía Blanca, Argentina. She was raised by Catholic nuns at Instituto Riglos alongside a community of fellow orphaned girls. From a young age, Tina lived up to her name—Clement, meaning merciful and compassionate. At Instituto Riglos, Tina once noticed a deaf girl who was being bullied by the other children. Knowing what it felt like to be an outsider, Tina defended the deaf girl, and from then on the two of them ate their lunches together in the cool shade of the orphanage’s courtyard. Until the day she died, Tina cared fiercely for others—even those she had only recently met.

She married Jose Sostaita in 1963. He was a widow with three children and, in them, she found a home and a family to call her own. The year after they married, Tina and Jose welcomed their only son together—Daniel. Giving birth to her boy was the greatest accomplishment of Tina’s life. She was so thrilled in the delivery room that even the nurses jumped up and down with excitement for the young woman, who repeated over and over again, Mamá, Mi nombre es mamá.

Though she was widowed in 1990, Tina was devoted to Jose and never took off her wedding band. She loved her husband. She loved sipping mate with loved ones around a kitchen table, talking for hours about their acquaintances, the news, and her favorite novelas. She loved animals, especially her dogs Pinky and, later in her life, her beloved negrito. She loved food, especially if it was made by her daughter-in-law, Irene. She enjoyed listening to tangos, cheering on San Lorenzo de Almagro and the Argentinian national fútbol team. Her favorite color was red. She was outgoing, funny, and possessed the unique gift of turning strangers into kin.

She lives on in the shape of her granddaughter Barbara’s nose and the bounce of her granddaughter Daniela’s hair, in the sound of her son’s laugh and the gentleness of her granddaughter Victoria’s character. All of them carry her blood within them, and though she entered this world alone, she left it surrounded by her loved ones, by flowers, by photos of a life well-lived.

Tina’s loved ones take comfort knowing she is now at peace with her Lord Jesus Christ. She leaves behind her only son, Daniel Sostaita, her daughter-in-law Irene Tarico, and granddaughters Barbara Sostaita and her partner Alex Morelli, Daniela Sostaita and her partner Gabriel Rosner, and Victoria Sostaita. Clementina is also survived by her stepchildren, Marta Sostaita, Juan Carlos Sostaita, and Mirta Grande, along with their loving children and grandchildren: Anibal Calabro, Coty Calabro, Dario Calabro, Gustavo Calabro, Jacqueline Gartin, Jake Gartin, Jillian Gartin, Christopher Sostaita, Ethan Sostaita, Kayden Sostaita, Laila Sostaita, and Taylor Sostaita.

In lieu of flowers, donations can be made in Tina’s memory to Kids in Need of Defense or the Young Center for Immigrant Children’s Rights.

Slate Funeral Home is honored to serve the family of Clementina Cesar. Online condolences may be offered at www.slatefh.com

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