Barbara Meislin
Encyclopedia
Barbara Meislin is an American author, singer, philanthropist
, and healer, known locally in the town of Tiburon, California
for a devotion to things colored purple
.
, in approximately 1936. She trained as a teacher at Hunter College
, taught high school and adult education French
and Spanish
in Tiburon. After learning guitar as an adult she became an "accomplished" singer, taught the instrument at Dominican College
, had a radio show on KQED
playing French music
, and played local restaurants, singing in French, Hebrew, and English. She recorded an album of music for healing. She divorced her husband, Jerry Meislin, on amicable terms in 1982.
In October, 2009, the large purple house where she had lived for 43 years, a local landmark, burned down.
, Israel, a "Positively Purple for the Breast Cancer" fashion show and fundraiser, She also donated a gazebo
for a local park and each year, since 2000 she has paid for hundreds of mentors and kids involved in Big Brothers Big Sisters of the North Bay to go ice skating at Snoopy's Home Ice Rink in Santa Rosa, California.
, lavender
, amethyst, lilac
, mauve
, magenta
, and indigo
. Most of her possessions are a shade of purple, including among other things:
Philanthropy
Philanthropy etymologically means "the love of humanity"—love in the sense of caring for, nourishing, developing, or enhancing; humanity in the sense of "what it is to be human," or "human potential." In modern practical terms, it is "private initiatives for public good, focusing on quality of...
, and healer, known locally in the town of Tiburon, California
Tiburon, California
Tiburon is an incorporated town in Marin County, California. It occupies most of the Tiburon Peninsula, which reaches south into the San Francisco Bay. The smaller city of Belvedere occupies the south-east part of the peninsula and is contiguous with Tiburon...
for a devotion to things colored purple
Purple
Purple is a range of hues of color occurring between red and blue, and is classified as a secondary color as the colors are required to create the shade....
.
Biography
Meislin, a non-practicing Jew, was born to a single mother in Newark, New JerseyNewark, New Jersey
Newark is the largest city in the American state of New Jersey, and the seat of Essex County. As of the 2010 United States Census, Newark had a population of 277,140, maintaining its status as the largest municipality in New Jersey. It is the 68th largest city in the U.S...
, in approximately 1936. She trained as a teacher at Hunter College
Hunter College
Hunter College, established in 1870, is a public university and one of the constituent colleges of the City University of New York, located on Manhattan's Upper East Side. Hunter grants undergraduate, graduate, and post-graduate degrees in more than one hundred fields of study, and is recognized...
, taught high school and adult education French
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
and Spanish
Spanish language
Spanish , also known as Castilian , is a Romance language in the Ibero-Romance group that evolved from several languages and dialects in central-northern Iberia around the 9th century and gradually spread with the expansion of the Kingdom of Castile into central and southern Iberia during the...
in Tiburon. After learning guitar as an adult she became an "accomplished" singer, taught the instrument at Dominican College
Dominican College
There are several current and former institutions of higher learning named Dominican College.-Higher education:*Dominican College , a four-year private college in Orangeburg, New York...
, had a radio show on KQED
KQED-FM
KQED-FM is an NPR-member radio station owned by Northern California Public Broadcasting in San Francisco, California.KQED-FM was founded by James Day in 1969 as the radio arm of KQED Television. The founding manager was Bernard Mayes who later went on to be Executive Vice-President of KQED TV and...
playing French music
French music
French music may refer to:*The music of the French*French classical music*French folk music*In Canada, French music may rather refer to the music of the French-Canadians, most often the music of Quebec or Acadians...
, and played local restaurants, singing in French, Hebrew, and English. She recorded an album of music for healing. She divorced her husband, Jerry Meislin, on amicable terms in 1982.
In October, 2009, the large purple house where she had lived for 43 years, a local landmark, burned down.
Career
She wrote and self-published a successful book, No One Can Ever Steal Your Rainbow, as well as a song by that name, on the occasion of the death of her daughter, Lori, from an rare childhood virus. The title was taken from a comment by her rabbi, who was consoling her after her purple mailbox was stolen (it was later returned). The book was later adapted as a ballet that premiered at the Marin Dance Theater.Public works
Meislin is also known for her charitable work. She variously founded, and donated the money to build, a hospice library, a "Purple Playground of Friendship" for both Jewish and Palestinian children in Neve Shalom / Wahat al-Salam near Tel AvivTel Aviv
Tel Aviv , officially Tel Aviv-Yafo , is the second most populous city in Israel, with a population of 404,400 on a land area of . The city is located on the Israeli Mediterranean coastline in west-central Israel. It is the largest and most populous city in the metropolitan area of Gush Dan, with...
, Israel, a "Positively Purple for the Breast Cancer" fashion show and fundraiser, She also donated a gazebo
Gazebo
A gazebo is a pavilion structure, sometimes octagonal, that may be built, in parks, gardens, and spacious public areas. Gazebos are freestanding or attached to a garden wall, roofed, and open on all sides; they provide shade, shelter, ornamental features in a landscape, and a place to rest...
for a local park and each year, since 2000 she has paid for hundreds of mentors and kids involved in Big Brothers Big Sisters of the North Bay to go ice skating at Snoopy's Home Ice Rink in Santa Rosa, California.
Purple
Meislin is known for her love for the color purple, and related shades of violetViolet (color)
As the name of a color, violet is synonymous with a bluish purple, when the word "purple" is used in the common English language sense of any color between blue and red, not including either blue or red...
, lavender
Lavender (color)
Lavender is a pale tint of violet. It applies particularly to the color of the flower of the same name. The web color called lavender is displayed at right—it matches the color of the very palest part of the lavender flower; however, the more saturated color shown below as floral lavender more...
, amethyst, lilac
Lilac (color)
Lilac is a color that is a pale tone of violet that is a representation of the average color of most lilac flowers. It might also be described as light purple. The colors of some lilac flowers may be equivalent to the colors shown below as pale lilac, rich lilac, or deep lilac...
, mauve
Mauve
Mauve is a pale lavender-lilac color, one of many in the range of purples. The color mauve is named after the mallow flower....
, magenta
Magenta
Magenta is a color evoked by light stronger in blue and red wavelengths than in yellowish-green wavelengths . In light experiments, magenta can be produced by removing the lime-green wavelengths from white light...
, and indigo
Indigo
Indigo is a color named after the purple dye derived from the plant Indigofera tinctoria and related species. The color is placed on the electromagnetic spectrum between about 420 and 450 nm in wavelength, placing it between blue and violet...
. Most of her possessions are a shade of purple, including among other things:
- her underwear
- her make-up
- her automobiles (license plates BPURPLE and BPURPLE2)
- her cell phone
- a garden with purple flowers
- her art collection