Because there was so much interest in and appreciation of Stewart Mott, my uncle, after he died last month, I thought I would let the community know that the first of three memorials for him will be held this Wednesday, July 9th, in New York City. All are welcome.
The memorial is from 3 - 4:30pm, and will be followed by a reception at 5pm. This will all take place at the Cathedral of St. John the Divine, where my aunt used to be an artist in residence and where she and Uncle Stewart were married. The Cathedral is located at 112th Street and Amsterdam Avenue on the Upper West Side. More details are here: http://stewartmottmemorial.blogspot.com/
The second memorial will take place in Bermuda a month later (August 9th), and the third will be held in DC a month after that (September 9th).
I encourage anyone who is interested in Stewart's life and work, or who is passionate about progressive politics, to come. As was well documented in his obituaries, Stewart took what he was given and used it to leverage and foster change and progress in the areas of womens' rights, nuclear disarmament, government reform, civil liberties, and peace.
I grew up in a house where we got 20-page long faxes on a seemingly daily basis from Stewart--railing against politicians who were doing no good, recommending books to read, suggesting recipes, asking questions and issuing challenges (ranging from the thought-provoking to "who can make the best Christmas card for the family"). I'm not sure what it would have been like without him as my uncle, but it surely would have been less interesting :)
He was an complex man whom I learned much from. I know that I will be celebrating him on Wednesday.