What’s in a name?
Published on March 3, 2021
Leaves from Stella is a unique name - a name its founder, Nathalie Santa Maria, developed for over a decade.
"The symbolism of the color green and how plants grow and evolve even after trimming leaves off, repotting and the like, is something I always found comforting throughout my grief journey. I believe humans can grow and evolve in the same ways after the death of a loved one," says Santa Maria.
Stella is a play on Estela Santa Maria's name - Nathalie and Diana's mother. A 'Stella' is a peperomia scandens green plant that Estela left her two daughters after she passed in 2010. Since then, Nathalie and Diana have been caring for and propagating Stellas to share with loved ones for their birthdays, anniversaries, or after a loved one's death.
"Gifting something that grows and that people we love can nurture and care for is the essence of what Stellas mean to us," says Santa Maria.
Leaves from Stella's values include nurturing the human spirit via emotional safe spaces and reducing financial barriers for knowledge acquisition. By gifting Stellas to scholarship recipients, it hopes others are fulfilled by caring for a Stella, propagating it, and sharing its love with others near and far.
Click here to view caring instructions for Stellas.
Leaves from Stella Founder + Executive Director, Nathalie Santa Maria, poses with her collection of Stellas holding a photograph of her late parents, Estela and Guillermo.