Cristiana was born in 1968 in Bucharest, Romania. Growing up she discovered a passion for computer science which led her to Bucharest Polytechnic University (1986-1991) where she met her future husband, Marius.

In 1993 she followed her passion halfway across the world to Houston TX where she enrolled in graduate studies at Rice University. She went on to complete her master's degree in 1997 and immediately started her PhD at the same University with the goal of becoming a professor. Along the way she gave birth to two wonderful children, Stefan and Gabriela. Despite the difficulty of juggling her role as a mother and the rigors of her PhD program, through her perseverance and tenacity she achieved her dream in 2003.

Thus, she began her new life as an Assistant Professor at the ECE department of University of Toronto accompanied by her loving family. Her hard work and dedication to her profession earned her the position of Associate Professor in 2009 and Full Professor in 2018.

Throughout her teaching career, she touched the lives of countless students and coworkers. She was a mentor to other newcomers, a supportive friend to her colleagues and a much-valued voice in her department. Many that knew her remarked that she was a generous soul and an incredibly thoughtful individual. At home she was always a nurturing mother, forever striving to bring the best in her children.

Even though she is no longer with us, Cristiana will always live-on in the loving memory of her family who miss her dearly.

To honor that memory, a service will be held at 1:00 PM on September 18, 2023, in the Funeral Centre at York Cemetery. In lieu of flowers, donations are invited to CAMH here: https://give.camh.ca/site/Donation2?df_id=2463&2463.donation=form1