Connie Lewis has died at age 87

Connie Lewis died peacefully March 2 in hospice care at Carleton-Willard Village in Bedford after a brief illness.

Connie was born on August 3, 1936, in DeKalb County, GA, the only child of Constance (Adams) Lewis and Albert Washington Lewis Jr. After both parents died young, Connie was raised with love by her Aunt Horty (Hortense Adams), her mother's sister-in-law.

Connie graduated from Sophie Newcomb College – then the sister school associated with all-male Tulane. She went on to earn MS degrees from Cornell University in English and from Harvard University in Counseling and Consulting Psychology.

She held a variety of professional positions centered on her two loves, writing and teaching. She worked at an Atlanta newspaper, taught at Beaver Country Day School in Chestnut Hill, and taught freshman writing at both the Drexel Institute of Technology (now Drexel University) and Simmons College (now Simmons University). She went on to reinvent herself as a technical writer, taking a course in BASIC at UMass Boston and joining the startup Interleaf as one of the first few employees. She worked as a technical writer at several tech companies until her retirement. After retiring, Connie returned to teaching: she led memoir-writing groups at Bemis Hall and The Commons in Lincoln for many years, developing a loyal following.

Connie moved to Battle Road Farm in Lincoln in 1997, where she grew amazing Christmas cacti, conjured hummingbirds from nowhere, and made the best Hoppin' John ever experienced in New England. An active citizen of Lincoln, Connie served on town boards including the Housing Commission, Historical Society, and Friends of the Council on Aging. She was a fixture at the Lincoln Town Meeting, spoke out in the local paper, and wrote voter mobilization postcards by the hundreds.

Her local civic engagement was only one facet of Connie's political work. She was a deeply committed peace activist, from the Vietnam War onward. She invested her time, energy, talents, and dollars in activities and organizations working to make the world a more just and humane place, at all scales: in her own workplaces, across the US, and internationally. She was a stalwart feminist, supporting female candidates for political office, fighting discrimination and promoting women's rights, and serving as an inspiring role model and mentor.

Most of all, Connie was an extraordinary friend.

She cultivated deep friendships both with people her own age, and with those decades (and even generations) younger, sharing her enthusiasm for music, politics, books, art, and good food and conversation with a wide circle of fortunate people.

During her final months, as throughout her long life, Connie was surrounded by many dear and longstanding friends. She will be greatly missed.

A memorial gathering will be held at 11:30 AM, on Saturday, April 13, at the Meeting House at Battle Road Farm in Lincoln. Parking is available at Lincoln North, a commercial building just beyond the entrance to Battle Road Farm.

In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation in Connie's memory to the Southern Poverty Law Center , Partners in Health, or a musical organization.

Directions To The Battle Road Farm Meeting House
From Route 128, Take the 2A Exit West towards Concord, MA.
Drive until you come to a blinking light and take a right onto Hanscom Field Drive.
From Concord, take 2A East towards Lexington, MA
Drive until you come to a blinking light and take a left onto Hanscom Field Drive.
When you come to the four-way stop sign,
take a left onto Old Bedford Road.

If your walking ability is limited , drive
300 yards and take a left into the Battle
Road Farm Condo Community. The
Meeting House will be on your right
Drop off passengers with limited mobility.
At the stop sign take a right or left, drive
down the road, and turn around and park
in front of the Meeting House on the right side facing out of the complex.
If you are able-bodied, drive past the Battle Road Farm
Entrance and take the next left at Lincoln North #55.
Go to the right and go 3/4 way around the
parking lot. There are lots of parking spaces there. You
will see a chain link fence, and walk down a slight hill to
the Meeting House. In front of you is the back door. Walk
around to the front to enter the front door.