Margarita Campos

Lastly, to all of us, O Lord—since of thy favor thou allowest thy servants to speak—to all of us who lived together in that association before her death in thee she devoted such care as she might have if she had been mother of us all; she served us as if she had been the daughter of us all.  -Saint Augustine

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Margarita Campos of Kalamazoo passed away Thursday May 23, 2024 after a brief illness. She was 92 years old.

Margarita Costero was born September 4, 1931 in Madrid, Spain. When the Spanish Civil War broke out in July of 1936, her family was forced into exile, first in France, and then Mexico City, where they settled permanently in 1937. Margarita often reminisced about her idyllic childhood in that colorful metropolis, walking for miles with her beloved younger brother José Luis to the movies so they could spend their pocket change on hot chocolate rather than bus fare, and later walking those same beautiful streets with another José Luis—the man who would eventually become her husband of sixty-five years. She excelled as a student, particularly in the areas of language and literature, and was soon teaching English to night-school students. She went on to study for several years at the University of Texas, with a summer stint in Oxford (one of her fondest memories), before finishing her bachelor’s degree in Mexico City. 

On January 11, 1959, Magarita and Dr. José Luis Campos were married in Mexico City. Soon after they moved to the United States for her husband’s medical residency in Colorado, which then led to opportunities in Gaithersburg, Maryland, Ann Arbor, Michigan, and eventually Kalamazoo, where they moved with their six children in 1974. 

Margarita continued to love books and, above all, teaching, for which she had prodigious talents. She taught Spanish at Hackett High School, Western Michigan University, and eventually Kalamazoo College, where she became a core member of the Department of Spanish Languages and Literature and fulfilled her lifelong dream of working in academia. She was an extraordinary woman—excellence and integrity personified—and deeply loved by her family, friends, students, and colleagues. She will be sorely missed.   

She is survived by her husband José Luis, six children, Paul (Jenny) Campos, Francis (Teresa) Campos, John Campos, Bernard (Andra) Campos, Louise (John) Tallarida, Isaac (Patricia) Campos; 13 grandchildren; 3 great-grandchildren; brother, Rafael Costero; sister, Maricarmen Costero; sister-in-law, Maruchi Costero; and several nieces & nephews among other relatives in Mexico and Spain. She was preceded in death by a brother, José Luis Costero.  

Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated 10 a.m. on Saturday, May 25, 2024 at St. Augustine Cathedral, Kalamazoo. Interment at Mt. Olivet Cemetery. Memorial contributions may be made to Catholic Charities. Arrangements by Adams-Redmond Funeral Home, Kalamazoo.