On August 2, 2015, I attended a ceremony, "Celebrating A Long Life" for Marjorie Ginsburg. Marjorie's family asked if I would join her family and friends in honoring her legacy, and speak about our friendship. As I reflected on the years that Marjorie and myself worked together, volunteered together, and simply enjoyed spending time together, it was both a joyful and endearing experience to remember all that I had learned from Marjorie Ginsburg.
It was easy to be a friend with Marjorie Ginsburg because of her kindness and generosity of spirit. I first met Marjorie in 2003 at Hollin Meadows Elementary School, a Fairfax County Public School that is nestled in the Hollin Hills neighborhood where Marjorie and her husband Woodrow were living. I was a Reading Specialist at Hollin Meadows Elementary-I had just begun my teachings at Hollin Meadows. Soon, after the beginning of the 2003 school year, I was approached by the Hollin Hills Community of Volunteers. This dedicated group of neighborhood volunteers were eager and willing to support the academic initiatives of the children that lived in their very own neighborhood. I was asked to coordinate academic initiatives with this dedicated and very accomplished group of community volunteers and the students of Hollin Meadows Elementary School. This was quite an honor for me to work along side Marjorie Ginsburg, Bobbie Seligmann, Barbara Shear and so many other volunteers of the Hollin Hills Community. And, the students that learned with this amazing group of volunteers gained wisdom and knowledge that reached well beyond the required Program of Studies.
Marjorie became a board member of Reading Is Fundamental of Northern Virginia, an affiliate of National RIF, a book-distribution program designed to promote a life-long love of reading. Reading Is Fundamental of Northern Virginia is an all-volunteer organization established in 1972 to serve children in pre-school through high school. While dedicating her services to the South County Health Center in Mount Vernon, Virginia, Marjorie partnered RIF of NOVA with the South County Health Center- she believed that reading to children would be a strong contributing factor to their well being. One afternoon during a school day at Hollin Meadows Elementary, Marjorie visited me in my Reading Room and invited me to join her at a Reading Is Fundamental of Northern Virginia Board Meeting. I did, and shortly after became a board member of RIF of NOVA. I remain on the Board of Reading Is Fundamental of Northern Virginia, and it is both an honor and a privilege for me to work, volunteer, and spend time with my colleagues while serving for this illustrious organization.
I consider myself to be most fortunate to have had some years with Marjorie Ginsburg. The valuable lessons that she shared with me will certainly not be forgotten, and her kindness and beautiful generosity of self will remain with me for years to come.
Most grateful, Glenna.