Mihaela Luiza Balan

Mihaela Luiza Balan, 72, passed away on January 23, 2024 at Albany Medical Center following a long illness and battle with cancer.

She was known to all as Luiza, with a warm heart, creative mind, and wonderful sense of humor. Luiza was a loving wife, mother and mamie (grandmother)!

She was born in Bucharest, Romania on February 15, 1951 to Ioan and Victoria Apostolescu. She attended high school and then became a gymnast, where she met her husband, Cornel. After her gymnastics career, Luiza became a gymnastics coach.

Luiza and her family moved to the United States in 1994, where she continued her career as a gymnastics coach at American Gymnastics in Bedford Hills. Once her daughters graduated college, Luiza and her husband moved to be closer to them and continued working at different gymnastics facilities. She loved working with children and teaching them gymnastics!

She is survived by her loving husband Cornel Balan; two daughters Alexandra Tabakman (Keith) and Ileana Cooper (Daniel); sister-in-law Virginia Balan; three grandchildren Cooper Tabakman, Ava Tabakman and Maddox Cooper.

She is predeceased in death by her parents.

Calling hours will be held on Tuesday, January 30, 2024 from 1:00 pm to 3:00 pm at Compassionate Funeral Care, 402 Maple Ave., Saratoga Springs, NY 12866.  A funeral service will be held at 3:00 p.m. following the calling hours at the funeral home. 

In lieu of flowers, donations in memory of Luiza may be made to Compassionate Funeral Care to help offset the cost of the funeral. 

“What we have once enjoyed deeply we can never lose. All that we love deeply becomes a part of us.” – Helen Keller

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