Maria Evgenieva Krusteva

When I published my master’s thesis, I dedicated it ‘For my mother, Mia’. When I showed it to Mom she said, “I’m touched, but you should have written For my mother, Dr. Krusteva”. Hence the formalities below.

Dr. Maria Evgenieva Krusteva was born on April 13th, 1948, in Sofia, Bulgaria. She attended the French High School in Sofia and graduated as class leader with honours. At the age of 19, she left Bulgaria for Canada. Her English needed work, but she had a dream of becoming a doctor. Her applications to Canadian medical schools were met with rejection because of her English; however, anyone who knew Mom knew that she was stubborn. She packed her bags, drove to Mexico, moved in with five strangers, learned Spanish, and decided to pursue her medical education at the Universidad Autónoma de Guadalajara. After finishing her medical training, she returned to Canada as a medical doctor.

The initial plan was to move to Toronto to be closer to her loving brother, Chavdar; however, her internship and radiology residency at Dalhousie University took her to the Maritimes. After residency she secured a job in St. Stephen, New Brunswick, and the plan changed once again. The new plan was to work in St. Stephen for a few years and then make her way to Toronto. She spent the next 40 years in St. Stephen.

Mom found purpose by lobbying to develop the Charlotte County Hospital Medical Imaging Department into what it is today. By doing so, she improved access to care for thousands of residents in our rural community. Although it was her professional pursuits that brought her to St. Stephen, it was the relationships that she developed which kept her there. Almost everyone in St. Stephen knew her. She was the bearer of bad news, good news, baby genders and everything in between. In the small town where she raised me, Mom was a dedicated radiologist, a devoted single parent, and the best role model I could have asked for. Her contributions the community were formally recognized at the time of her retirement by the residents of Charlotte County, and she was inducted as a Life Member of the New Brunswick Medical Society.

When Mom finally retired and moved to Toronto, she had the opportunity to spend more time with her brother, as well as his friends and family. She was finally able to enjoy the house that she had kept for the past four decades and was able to reconnect with her Bulgarian heritage through the Bulgarian community in Toronto. Last year, she even returned to Bulgaria for the first time since leaving half a century ago. As one could imagine, Bulgaria has undergone massive changes and after returning from her trip, she called me to tell me that “It felt so different but also familiar. I had all these feelings, but I don’t know how to describe them”. I think the word she was looking for was nostalgia.

Mom was diagnosed with a glioblastoma brain tumour in November 2023. In her final weeks she remained comfortable, happy, and surrounded by loved ones. Her favourite words became ‘I love you’, which she would shout out anytime she heard our footsteps as we entered her room and sometimes when it was just the dryer rattling around.

Mom passed away on January 13th, 2024. She was predeceased by her mother, Violeta, and father, Evgeni. She is survived by Chavdar and his wife Mariela to whom she was a loving sister and sister-in-law, Christian and Victor to whom she will always be Lelya [aunt] Mia, and me, Eugene, who will always think of her as my loving mother, Dr. Krusteva.

Services will be held at Jerrett Funeral Home at 660 Kennedy Road in Toronto, Ontario on Friday January 19th, 2024. Viewing will take place from 9:30-10:30 am and chapel service at 10:30 am. In lieu of flowers, we request donations be made to a charitable organization of your choosing.

For those not able to attend the service you are welcome to view the service through the Livestream link as we celebrate a life well lived. Link to be posted closer to service date https://fweb.tv/116446