MariaLuisa Sanabria Burroughs

MariaLuisa Sanabria Burroughs, 86, passed away peacefully into God’s care on August 14, 2026, in Sacramento, California. Born on May 29, 1940, in Chapala, Jalisco, Mexico, she lived a beautiful life defined by faith, adventure, creativity, and an unwavering devotion to children.

As a young woman, she spent a summer with an aunt and uncle in Los Angeles and traveled to Kentucky and New York. While teaching Spanish to Americans in Chapala, she met her future husband, Trent Burroughs. After moving to Sacramento, MariaLuisa married Trent, her beloved husband of 43 years. A woman with an adventurous spirit, she traveled the world, visiting Europe, the Holy Land, London, Canada, and Hawaii. Closer to home, she cherished road trips to Lassen County, camping, and traveling to Reno with her husband to play the slot machines.

MariaLuisa held a deep interest in early childhood education and dedicated her life to making the world a better place for all young people. She worked for the Sacramento City Unified School District, retiring in 2003 with 24 years of dedicated service to the Foster Youth Program. As a passionate catechist and educator, she taught hundreds of students, attended countless graduations, and left an indelible mark of resilience and success on children for generations to come.

Her faith was the cornerstone of her life. MariaLuisa had a legendary love for Christmas and designed elaborate Nativity dioramas to remember the true meaning of the holiday. She served as a 2004 Synod Delegate for the Diocese of Sacramento and volunteered as a Eucharistic Minister, bringing Holy Communion and comfort to Catholic patients at Mercy General Hospital.

Outside of her career and ministry, MariaLuisa was a woman of many talents and passions. She was a gifted seamstress known for her incredible skill and artistry. She found immense joy in gardening, flower arranging, volunteering, and hunting for treasures while thrift shopping. She brought beauty, warmth, and laughter to those around her, even if she was famously “always late,” a classic trait that became a beloved and endearing part of her vibrant personality.

A devoted wife and mother figure to many, she is survived by her daughter, Francesca Burroughs; her beloved niece, Erin O’Brien, and Erin’s daughters, whom she loved as granddaughters, Caitlin Campbell and Emerald O’Brien; her beloved sister, Consuelo Sanabria Ortega; and many more cherished nieces, nephews, cousins, and friends. She believed in leaving the world better than she found it, and she succeeded.

A mass of Christian burial will be held at St. Mary’s Catholic Church, 1333 58th Street, Sacramento, CA at 11 AM on Friday, September 18, 2026. In honor of MariaLuisa’s lifelong mission to support children, the family requests that in lieu of flowers, donations be made in her memory to the Sacramento Children’s Home.

“A hundred years from now it will not matter what my bank account was, the sort of house I lived in, or the kind of car I drove, but the world may be different because I was important in the life of a child.” – Forest Witcraft