Obituary of Magdalena Santiago Beltran

October 11, 1937 - October 5, 2024

Magdalena Santiago Beltran. Age 86 of Grosse Ile.

Beloved wife of the late Benedicto. Loving mother of Nelson Beltran and Vladimir Beltran. Dearest grandmother of Natalie Beltran.

Family Tribute ~

Magdalena was born on October 11, 1937 in Camiling Tarlac, Philippines to Juan Santiago, a farmer, and Martha Rosete Santiago. She was the youngest of 11 children but most of her siblings passed away at a young age due to the poor medical care in the Philippines, and only four of them grew up to be adults. They were Beatriz, Casimiro, Epifania and Dominga.

Since Magdalena was a child, she wanted to be a doctor. She was very studious and graduated at the top of her elementary school class in Tarlac. Then she went to Arellano University in Pasay City for high school. Her family owned a small grocery store in Pasay City and despite Magdalena working all the time in that store, she still managed to get good grades in high school and college. She had a bachelor’s degree in nursing at Manila Adventist School in Pasay City. After that, she went to medical school at Manila Central University and graduated in 1962. On June 12, 1965 she married Benedicto Beltran. In 1967, she emigrated to the US with her husband, and her eldest son, Nelson who was an infant. In 1969, her son Vladimir was born. Being a foreign medical graduate, it was not that easy for Magdalena to start her medical career here in the US. She had to take the licensing exam multiple times while juggling working in a hospital and taking care of her two small children. However, she persevered, diligently studied until she completed all her exams. She then decided to pursue a residency in Psychiatry. She also was able to send both of her children to Michigan State University and Siena Heights University Graduate School and support her granddaughter’s education at the University of Detroit Mercy. She loved to work on her garden, collect angel sculptures, play with her two cats, entertain her close friends, and was an avid churchgoer with her family at Grosse Ile Sacred Heart Church.

Magdalena worked a total of 47 years before she retired in 2006. She survived two surgeries for brain aneurysms in 1999 and breast cancer in 2014, after which she returned to work. Her last job was as a psychiatrist at the Allen Park and Detroit VA Hospitals where she worked for almost 30 years. Previous to her work with the VA, she worked at one of the State of Michigan psychiatric hospitals.

Magdalena and her late husband, Benedicto were active founding members of Brownstown Lions Club since 1982. They were also early members of the organization, Downriver Filipino American Association since 1989. In addition to these activities, they helped organize a shrine of the Filipino saint, St Lorenzo Ruiz in Bellevue, OH through their involvement with an organization called PACOUSA. They donated an ambulance in Nueva Ecija, Philippines to make a difference in that town’s medical care. They sponsored their extended relatives to emigrate to the US, and welcomed them into their beautiful Grosse Ile home for many years.

Throughout her life, Magdalena had influenced the people around her in positive ways. She was a devoted wife, a loving mother, a doting grandmother of Natalie Beltran, a helpful relative, a great friend and most of all, an empathic psychiatrist. To those whose life she had touched, she will always have a place for her in their hearts. She led a peaceful, and happy life with her family.