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Barbara Fishelman Litt - Class of 1953

Submitted by Fran Olson Gustafson 1965 <fgustafson917@gmail.com> on 26/Jan/2024
71.223.227.14

Message:

Barbara Litt, 88, was born in Newburgh, NY and she died at Maris Grove in Glen Mills, PA on January 22, 2024. She was born to Charles and Ruth Fishelman, immigrants who crossed through Ellis Island from Russia in 1912. She grew up in Newburgh, NY, where her father had a men's clothing store. She was sister to her brother Albert who died as a young adult.

The most important thing to understand is that Barbara Litt has been an artist and art teacher for most of her life. Even as a young child in the beautiful Hudson Valley of New York, she used to sit on her front porch and create art. She filled our homes with her distinct vision of the world that infused her family's and friends lives with color and beauty.

At fifteen she met her husband, Harold, at a dance mixer that included the neighboring town of Poughkeepsie. They eventually married and remained so for the next 50 years. They had two children, Andrea, married to Bill Ries, and Jeffrey Litt who is married to Debbie. Barbara and Harold had five grandchildren; Lauren (Kevin Clery), Diana (Brian Mason), Victoria (Timothy Struder) and Max Ries (Thomas Delavan) and Emily Litt (Mark Moots). They were a great source of joy, as were Barbara's great grandchildren, Finnegan and Reagan.

Art was always her mainstay and passion. Barbara was an art teacher for thirty years and whether she was creating her own art or helping children to find their own artistic potential, art was the great love of her life. She also taught both gifted and elementary education, but in the art studio she felt that was where "the square peg can fit in a round hole". After she retired, Barbara fulfilled a lifelong dream of becoming a docent at the Brandywine River Museum, where she was a dedicated tour guide for many years.

Her art was the way she shared her many travel adventures by painting what she saw and experienced. She brought that same talent to her synagogue, Temple Sholom. Through tapestry, she honored a retiring Rabbi and created a mosaic with the children's school at the Temple. Art was always at the center of her life and will be her lasting gift to her family and many others. Barbara and Harold were both active and involved in their Temple in a myriad of ways for decades.

To honor Barbara and her creative life, there will be a memorial service at 10:30 am on January 30, 2024 at Temple Sholom in Broomall, PA, followed by a brief graveside service at Haym Salomon Memorial Park in Frazer, PA. All are welcomed to a luncheon at Limoncello in Chester Springs, PA at 12:45 pm. Contributions in her memory to Temple Sholom would be greatly appreciated.

www.levinefuneral.com