Lisa Flaxman, Gave Children The Gift Of Music, 43, Washington Post
DGH
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/01/18/AR2009011802251.html
She Gave Children the Gift of Music
Lisa Flaxman, 43, the founder of a Washington DC area music program for
infants and young children called musiKids, died January 14, 2009, of breast
cancer at her home in Chevy Chase.
Ms. Flaxman created musiKids in 1998 when she couldn't find a music class
for her infant son that combined early childhood music education with a
dynamic teaching approach. At musiKids, she relied on professional musicians
and experienced early childhood educators who encouraged children to sing,
play, listen and move. The organization originally was based at Chevy Chase,
Maryland, Baptist Church and now has studio locations in Bethesda,
Rockville, Maryland, and the District [Washington DC], along with several
area satellites. MusiKids teaches more than 500 children a week.
Families Magazine and the lilaguide, among other publications, rated
musiKids the best children's music education provider in the Washington DC
area.
Ms. Flaxman also helped schools and day-care centers evaluate their early
childhood music programs and provided teacher training and guidance to
integrate music into the curriculum.
Lisa Judith Flaxman was born in Providence, The State of Rhode Island and
Providence Plantations, and received her undergraduate degree in history and
international relations from Brown University in 1987. She worked for a
publisher in Princeton, New Jersey, before taking a position in 1988 as a
paralegal at Arnold & Porter, a D.C. law firm. She later worked as a
consultant on linguistic programs at Booz Allen Hamilton.
After receiving her law degree in 1994 from Georgetown University, she
worked as a tax and estate associate at Dow Lohnes until the birth of her
first child in 1997.
Ms. Flaxman studied classical piano and had sung in professional theater
companies since age 5. Her repertoire included opera, art song, musical
theater, folk, and children's world music. In the Washington area, she
performed with the Washington Savoyards, the Washington Chorus and the
Bethesda Community Theatre. She was a member of Temple Sinai, where she sang
in the chorus and served on the music committee.
She was named one of Maryland's Top 100 Women in 2007 and in 2006 received
the first Women Business Owners of Montgomery County Sapphire Award,
acknowledging a woman in business for at least five years who gives back to
the community. She also received a 2007 Maryland Top Innovator Award for
founding musiKares, a nonprofit program dedicated to building music
libraries and providing musical programs for Georgetown Hospital patients to
help relieve their anxiety.
She was the author of a collection of poetry, "Glances at Time: A Young
Mother's Journey with Breast Cancer," in 2008 and created an anthology of
Georgetown Hospital patients' writing titled "Lombardi Voice." She wrote
many articles on early childhood music and development.
Survivors include her husband of 16 years, Jonathan Martel of Chevy Chase;
and three children, Benjamin Martel, Sophie Martel and Zachary Martel, all
of Chevy Chase.
--
Joe Holley
Joe Pucillo
> Lisa Judith Flaxman was born in Providence, The State of Rhode Island and
> Providence Plantations,
Okay, so that made me laugh. But I'm going to start referring to
you as LouisGH
JP