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Sonya Salamon Obituary
SANTA FE, N.M. - Sonya Blank Salamon, 85, of Santa Fe, N.M., passed away peacefully after a short illness on Aug. 16, 2025.
Sonya was born in Pittsburgh, Pa., in 1939, to Ethel Snider and Marcus Blank. Sonya attended the University of Pittsburgh Experimental School and Allderdice High School before earning a bachelor's degree from Carnegie Institute of Technology, a master's in anthropology from the University of California-Berkeley and a Ph.D. from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, where she was subsequently a faculty member from 1974-2006. In her work researching Midwestern families, Sonya wrote three books and over 70 book chapters and journal articles and was awarded numerous academic honors.
Sonya is survived by her husband, Myron; sons, David and Aaron (Stacey); granddaughters, Lina and Bryn; sisters, Gail (Alan) Koss, Carla (Ishmael) Blank and Judith Blank; and numerous beloved family and friends.
Donations may be made in her name to the Lymphoma Research Foundation and the American Indian College Fund.
Memories and Condolences
for Sonya Salamon
3 Entries
Bob Hughes
September 10, 2025
Dear Myron and family. I am sad to learn about Professor Salamon´s passing. As a brand new faculty member in 1982, Sonya was an important mentor to me. I think she thought I needed a lot of help and she was probably right. She was always available to help me think about issues and to guide my work as a beginning family scientist. Years later when I returned to the U of Illinois as Head of the same Department, Sonya was still there and still an important guide in my new role in administration. She often came by my office at the end of the day to chat about issues, large and small. She always had good insights and often useful criticism of my leadership and various Department policies. I looked forward to these quiet, meaningful conversations. I am grateful to have had Sonya as a mentor, colleague and friend.
Matteo Marini
September 8, 2025
I was an Italian Fulbright Visiting Scholar at University of Illinois @ Urbana-Champaign in 1996 because I was sponsored by Sonya. We worked together and I learned a lot from our collaboration. I appreciated her anthropological lenses applied to rural sociology. Then, after some years, I received her and her husband Myron's visit at University of Calabria, Italy. Our correspondance lasted since then and I would like to get this opportunity to send my deepest condoleances to Myron, David and Aaron also on the part of my family.
Susan
September 7, 2025
My favorite Professor who I thought of often, rest in peace!
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