URLA, CARMEN M., of Waterford, passed away July 25, 2021 at the age of 98. Predeceased by her husband, Joseph L. Urla, her sister Manuela M. Cirre, of Southfield, two other sisters and a brother in Mexico and Spain, as well as by a fourth brother who perished, in 1941, in the Nazi concentration camp Mauthausen. She is survived by her five children, Julia Urla, of Waterford, Paul Urla (Becky Lenaburg), Jacqueline Urla, Jonathan Urla, Joseph Urla (Stephanie Laffont) and former daughter-in-law Jill Geddes; proud grandmother of Natalie, Daniel, and Silvie. During her final years, Carmen was lovingly cared for not just by her daughter Julia and family but also by her caregiver, Rose McGee, of Pontiac. Carmen was born on November 6th, 1922, in Granada, Spain. Although childhood polio had left her with significant physical disability, her zest for life and determination enabled her to lead a rich and long life. In 1948, a decade after the Spanish Civil War ended with the overthrow of the Spanish Republic, and the victory of the fascist military uprising, she and two siblings, along with their mother, fled to Mexico in order to escape persecution by the dictatorship. From Mexico, she then emigrated to the United States, where she enrolled as a graduate student in the Spanish program at the University of Illinois, Champaign-Urbana. It was there that she and Joseph met and married. Making their way to Michigan after completing their studies, Carmen accepted an offer to apply for a position teaching Spanish at Oakland University, becoming one of the founding members of the faculty. She taught Spanish language, literature and culture at Oakland from 1960 until 1986, beloved by her students and admired by colleagues throughout the university. During her career as a professor, she organized Spanish plays by OU students, took groups of students to Spain, and worked as a volunteer Reader for the Blind. Her absence will be deeply and forever felt by her extended family, friends, and community. An endowment is being created in her name, to help OU Spanish students wishing to study abroad. For more information, contact Julia at [email protected] .