Maria del Carmen Hershey Coss Vallejo, age 64, passed into the next life on Wednesday, January 3, 2018. Born in Mexico City on December 25, 1953, Maria spent her life advocating for the underserved and for those who did not have a voice. Maria and her daughter made their permanent home in the United States in 1987 and became residents of Humboldt County in 1990.

As a longtime resident of Eureka, she was a member of the Eureka legal community and provided translation services for the legal system all over Northern California from 1992 to 2009. She ran her own business, Northcoast Translators, which served the local Hispanic community in addition to other minority communities in the region.

She was a loving mother, treasured friend and she was passionate about civil rights.

She is survived by her partner of nearly 23 years, Jamie Rose; daughter, Anet Hershey-Forbes; son-in-law, Richard Forbes; grandson Alexander; brother Robert Ruel, and his family; as well as additional family in Mexico City.

There will be two memorial services, The first will be held for Maria’s friends and family in Eureka on January 19, 2018 at 2:00 p.m. at Immanuel Lutheran Church, 3230 Harrison Ave, Eureka. The second memorial service will be held at 2 p.m. on Sunday, Feb. 4th at the Unity Spiritual Center of San Francisco at 2690 Ocean Ave, San Francisco.

The family is currently creating a memorial fund in Maria’s name in order to continue her life’s work assisting others.

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The obituary above was submitted on behalf of Maria del Carmen Hershey Coss Vallejo’s family. The Lost Coast Outpost runs obituaries of Humboldt County residents at no charge. See guidelines here.