6 May is a special day to embrace Maria Montessori's legacy: it is the day she died in 1952, in Noordwijk.

On a warm and sunny day, in a holiday home overlooking her beloved sea she lay down in the afternoon for a nap, never to wake up.

Following her wishes to be buried “wherever” she died, the funeral services took place in this small seaside town of Noordwijk at 08:30 in the morning. A historical newspaper of 8 May 1952 reports that honouring the wishes of Maria Montessori the funeral was an unostentatious ceremony, attended only by family, co-workers and friends. As per Maria Montessori’s request no government officials had been invited to attend or speak. At the church the Gregorian Requiem Mass was sung by a local church choir. After mass and prayers Maria Montessori found her last resting place in the Catholic Cemetery of Noordwijk.

During tumultuous times, Maria Montessori wrote:

We look upon the child as the builder of a new world. We conceive him as a power who holds a secret of life, hitherto unknown. We strive to put aside the obstacles which hinder this treasure of the child’s soul from revealing itself. We do this not only in order to ensure the wellbeing of the child, but to achieve a betterment of humanity in general, because these revelations can furnish a positive hope for a new world. We are deeply convinced that all children, whatever their background, wherever they live in the world have something in common that can help unite the world.

(1939, Monthly Letter February)

The photo shows Maria Montessori and her son Mario in 1951 in Innsbruck, Austria.