Graciela Hernandez Amaya

Graciela de Jesús R Hernández Amaya, age 89 passed away on December 27, 2025. She was born in the town of Betulia in Antioquia, Colombia to Luis M Hernández and Ana Felisa Amaya. She was the oldest of six siblings.

She obtained a degree as a bilingual secretary, which led her to work with reputable psychologists who sponsored her to come to the United States in 1963.

From the late 1960’s to the early 1980’s Graciela worked as an executive in the maritime industry becoming the first woman to lead the operations for CAVN in the port of New York. Later on, she worked for Dutch company Hapag Lloyd in Houston, Texas where she tracked and directed ships all over the world. From the 1990’s until retirement in 2012, Graciela proudly worked as an expert translator for the judges at Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) in Chicago and in Connecticut where the Judges honored her with a special retirement party and a personalized letter from Attorney General John Ashcroft.

Graciela was creative and artistic, she loved poetry, played the piano restore religious statues and mosaics, and was a talented painter. She loved to paint landscapes and flowers at the Queens Botanical Garden in Flushing, NY. At one point she founded a mail-order painting service for people who wanted replicas of famous works of art.

Graciela was intelligent, strong-willed, and accomplished all she set out to do in life. She enjoyed gardening and remained sharp and engaged throughout her later years.

A woman of deep faith, Graciela was a member of the Order of Saint Francis of Assisi. She was known for her generosity and supported many charities, including those that assist children with cancer.

She is survived by her two nephews, Elkin and Edgar, her two nieces Diana and Sandra, and by her sister Celina and her brother Antonio, as well as her faith community at Comunidad San José and her friends from St. Peter Catholic Church. Her wit and honesty will be sorely missed!!

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