Catalina Carmen Mantel

VIRGINIA BEACH – Catalina Carmen Mantel passed peacefully on February 14, 2025, just shy of 91.

She was a kind, sweet, and elegant soul who loved people and chocolate. So, passing on Valentine’s Day was bittersweet and apropos.
Catalina was born in Montevideo, Uruguay to parents who emigrated from Hungary after the war. She had a lifelong love of languages. She studied at the Lycée Francais, and the Consejo Nacional de Ensenanza Secundaria.

Catalina mastered six languages fluently: Spanish, Hungarian, French, Italian, Portuguese, and English. She studied hard and passed the challenging exam to become a certified Federal Interpreter, and then worked for the Department of Justice in N.Y., Calif., and Va.

She was known as “Kathy” to her friends, and she was nicknamed “El Cuerpo” in her 20s. A natural beauty, she met the love of her life, Mike Mantel, in Santiago, Chile in 1958. They married after a short courtship, and had two children, Andrea and Charles.

Catalina loved to shop. She was a clothes horse, with a sophisticated and elegant style. She read the New York Times daily and clipped articles for her friends that she thought they would enjoy. She was also a garden club member, bridge player, and ballet dancer.

Above all, Catalina was very social and valued the many, many friends and colleagues that she had throughout the years. Everyone loved Kathy!

Catalina “Kathy” is survived by her daughter, Andrea Mantel of Virginia Beach. She is also survived by her niece and nephews and their families, Elyse Salend and Jon Pynoos of Beverly Hills, Calif., Spencer and Suzanne Salend of New Paltz, N.Y., and Howard Salend and Laurel Waldman of Needham, Mass. She was predeceased by her husband, Mike Mantel, and her son, Charles Mantel.

A graveside service took place at B’nai Israel Cemetery. www.hdoliver.com.