Carmel Lena Triska

Carmel Lena Triska died peacefully in her home on Saturday, March 23, 2019. She was 93 years old. Born in Oakland on Thanksgiving Day, November 26, 1925, she was the only child of Italian immigrants Eugene and Mary Burastero who operated a produce stand in the old Oakland Wholesale Produce Market. At Oakland High School, Carmel excelled in English literature, writing, and the arts, singing in the choir, and performing in theatre and orchestra. Carmel graduated with an AB in English, a Music Minor, and a teaching credential. She taught English and codirected the choir at Salinas High School, and in 1951 married Jan Triska, a recent emigre from Czechoslovakia. They fell in love, and were married in Oakland on August 26, 1951. The young couple pursued education and careers in Saint Louis and then Boston, where Carmel earned her MA in Education at Harvard. They lived in Palo Alto where son Mark was born, and Ithaca, New York, where John was born, before settling in Menlo Park in 1960, when Jan joined the faculty at Stanford. Carmel took time off teaching to support the family at home and in overseas postings in Vienna and Florence. In 1970, she returned to teaching in Redwood City middle schools, before “retiring” to volunteer teaching English to recent immigrants, and mentoring challenged youth. Throughout her life Carmel was an intrepid traveler, visiting numerous countries in North and South America, Eastern and Western Europe, Asia, Africa, and the Pacific islands. She was a parishioner of St. Raymond and St. Denis, and participated in the

St. Raymond Church choir for many years. She was a member of the St. Dennis Book Club, and was also the Stanford Italian (language) Club. She loved language, and enjoyed reading, working crossword puzzles, viewing fine and performing arts, watching movies, and engaging in conversation around ideas. She loved all living things. Those of us privileged to have known Carmel will remember her wonderful interpersonal skills, intellectual curiosity, selfless generosity, and resilient sense of humor. Time spent with Carmel was refreshing, leaving a lasting impression of hope and possibility. She listened with compassion, and possessed the rare gift of finding the good in everyone. She was a role model and mentor to many. She will be greatly missed. The family is deeply grateful for the dedication and loving kindness of Carmel’s caregivers, who enabled Carmel to remain at the center of family and friends until the end. Carmel is survived by her two sons, Mark and his wife Maria of Livermore, and John and his wife Christine of Redwood City; her granddaughters Audra, Chiara, Karis, and Iris; and her great grandchildren Amelie, Trinity, Nolan, and Sloane. For information about Carmel’s funeral and celebration of life, please contact Funeral Director John O’Connor at (650) 329-8022.