Reader Care Note. This piece touches on themes of loss, grief, and emotional complexity.
This reflection is published in honour of Marian Rachelle Hansen Fortuné, lovingly known as Maz D’Ivoire, whose commitment to community care extended far beyond her professional life.
Born on September 2, 1987, in Côte d’Ivoire, Marian’s life began across borders, cultures, and languages. A global beginning that shaped how she moved through the world with openness, empathy, and conviction.
Marian was deeply passionate about supporting people experiencing housing insecurity and expressed a strong desire to raise funds for the Calgary Drop-In Centre, where she later worked directly with individuals navigating addiction and eating disorders. In recognition of her wishes, Afros in tha City encourages readers who are able to continue this act of care in her name.
We honour Marian not only through remembrance, through action, and by remaining factual, independent, and steadfast in our commitment to uplifting and supporting our Diaspora and the broader community she cared for so deeply.
Marian of Côte d’Ivoire: A Soul Rooted in West Africa, Loved Across the Diaspora
There are people whose lives feel larger than the rooms they occupy…not because they seek attention, but because their presence moves things. Marian was one of those people.
Born in Côte d’Ivoire and raised in West Africa during her early childhood, Marian spent formative years in Tominian and Sikasso, Mali, surrounded by family, community, and a constellation of missionary “aunts and uncles” who adored her. From the beginning, she was shaped by Africa. Not only as a place, but as an identity. She carried that pride openly and unapologetically. Her connection to the continent was so deep that she permanently marked it on her body with a tattoo of Africa — a quiet declaration of belonging and love.
Marian never fit neatly into the boxes the world tried to place her in — and she had no interest in doing so. As her friend Nicole Dodd reflected, “Marian was one of the most unique individuals I’ve ever met. She didn’t fit into any box the world tried to place her in. She was her own person in so many ways.”
She was eccentric, artistic, and deeply creative. She lived with intention and clarity, and with a form of love that was practical, generous, and rooted in action. Marian didn’t just speak about care. She organized it, coordinated it, and followed through on it.
Marian cared deeply about oppressed people and spoke openly about social justice and race, often challenging conversations that felt too comfortable or incomplete. Nicole shared that Marian was “deeply proud of her West African upbringing” and consistently used her voice to advocate for justice and dignity. Her advocacy was principled rather than performative, grounded in lived experience and community responsibility.
Her professional life reflected the same ethic. Marian worked as a nurse in home care and later in inpatient programs supporting people experiencing eating disorders and addiction at the Calgary Drop-In Centre. She was respected for her integrity, her attention to facts, and her insistence on caring for people fully and properly. Even while navigating personal challenges, she remained attentive to the needs of others and deeply committed to compassionate care.
She stayed as close as life allowed to her family and friends, holding connection as something sacred rather than optional. She adored her four children: Isabella, Elijah, Priscilla, and Adelina, and was fiercely proud of them. She loved creating joy with them, celebrating their individuality, and building memories rooted in presence and love.
At her Celebration of Life, space was made for honesty. Not only about Marian’s strength and impact, but also about the complexity of her inner world. Nicole shared with care, “It breaks my heart that she was in deep emotional pain and very few people knew how bad it was. I wish I was a better friend to her.”
That reflection speaks to a broader truth: that people can be vibrant, outspoken, and deeply caring, while also carrying struggles that are not always visible to those around them. Acknowledging this reality does not diminish Marian’s life or legacy. It honours her humanity and invites compassion rather than judgment.
What makes this loss so profound is not only her absence, but the fullness of her presence while she was here. Marian lived with intention. She left evidence. In people, in advocacy, in creativity, in acts of care, and in the courage to live authentically.
Her Celebration of Life reflected this truth. There was grief. Heavy and real. But there was also reunion, healing, and connection. Old tensions softened. Friendships were renewed. People held one another. Marian brought people together, even in her leaving.
Marian was exactly who she showed us to be: a woman of conviction and creativity, deeply proud of her roots, unafraid to speak up, and deeply loved. Her life reminds us that care must be both compassionate and honest. This gathering reminded us that showing up for one another, fully and imperfectly, matters.
In Honour of Marian: A Call to Action
Marian believed care should be practical. Visible. Lived out.
She showed us that love is not only something we feel. It is something we do.
Throughout her life and work, Marian was deeply committed to supporting people experiencing housing insecurity, addiction, and food insecurity. She spoke often about dignity in care and expressed a strong desire to raise funds for the Calgary Drop-In Centre. A place where she later worked directly with people navigating some of life’s most difficult circumstances.
In honour of Marian’s wishes, Afros in tha City invites our community to continue this work in her name.
If you are able, we encourage you to make a donation to the Calgary Drop-In Centre. Your contribution supports essential services including housing support, recovery programs, meals, and health services. Care that meets people where they are, just as Marian did every day.
This is not about charity.
It is about community responsibility.
It is about showing up. Consistently, thoughtfully, and with integrity.
Whether you give financially, share this call, or find ways to support care work in your own community, know that these actions matter. They create ripple effects. They build systems of care that outlive us.
Together, we carry her legacy forward.
A Note of Gratitude
Marian, thank you for your unwavering and undivided support of Afros in tha City. Your belief in this work, in our people, and in the power of truth and community meant more than words can express.
We honour you by continuing forward. We honour you by remaining factual, independent, and ever determined to be a pillar of strength and support for our Diaspora. Your legacy lives on in how we show up, how we tell our stories, and how we care for one another.
You are loved. Always. - Kimberley Dooshima Jev, Afros in tha City
Reader Care Note
This piece touches on themes of loss, grief, and emotional complexity. If you or someone you know is navigating a difficult time, support is available. In Canada, you can call or text 211 to connect with community, mental health, and social support services in your area. If you are outside Canada, local community organizations and health services can help direct you to appropriate resources.
Reaching out for support is an important step, and no one has to navigate these experiences alone.