On December 20, 1932, Maria Elena Santiago was born in San Juan, Puerto Rico. Later, she moved to New York City where she resided with her aunt Provi Garcia. After her mother passed away in 1935, her father convinced her to move in with her aunt.
Her first position was as a receptionist for the music label Peermusic. In 1957, she met Buddy Holly here; he would go on to become her devoted spouse.
Buddy and his crew were on their way to see Murray Deutch, the boss of Santiago. The day before they started recording the track Early In The Morning, Buddy asked her out. She had to gain her aunt Garcia’s approval because this was her first date. Buddy proposed to her five hours after their first date, thus they experienced “love at first sight.”
