After a short but courageous fight with brain cancer, Martha Watson Lewis passed away at her home in Delray Beach on May 20, 2023, with close family by her side.
Muffy Lewis
She was known to all by her childhood name, Muffy, which perfectly fit her relaxed, fun, friendly personality. Although she never wanted to be the center of attention, she was inevitably surrounded by her family and her many, many friends from Chicago to New Canaan, Nantucket, and Florida. She filled her home and life with laughter and joy and people wanted to be a part of her world.
Born in Highland Park, Illinois in 1956, Muffy quickly proved herself to be a smart and determined child, who knew how to persevere through any challenge, such as figuring out how to stay home from school by offering to clean the family household or give her mom a back massage. She won skating races at the Northfield skating rink, even though she started in the wrong direction, and swimming races at the Old Willow Club. When she was in Sixth grade her essay on Abraham Lincoln won a national competition and earned a trip to attend President Nixon’s first inauguration in Washington D.C. Despite her unassuming genuine nature, she was also a gifted actress, and she played one of the leads in an Eighth-grade production of “Oliver”, delivering her lines in a full Cockney accent.
After graduating from New Trier in 1974, Muffy attended the University of Wisconsin with her old Churchill Street friend, Tracey Carroll, and graduated from Katharine Gibbs School in Boston. She then entered the world of business in Chicago to work in advertising sales for the just debuted Working Woman magazine. It was only after marrying Tom Lewis in 1984, that Muffy discovered her true life’s passion, raising her three children, Whitney, Sam, and Elizabeth. She was a loving and devoted mother, who applied equal parts heart and humor in her parenting approach, traits that her children now carry forward for her.
A long-time resident of New Canaan, Connecticut, where her children grew up and went to school, Muffy was also a member of the New Canaan Garden Club and shared her own gardens more than once on behalf of local fundraising tours. After her divorce in 2016, Muffy spent most of her time at her home on Nantucket, where she and her family had summered for years. She loved making to-do lists with her coffee in the morning, walking her golden retrievers on the beach, reading and completing crossword puzzles in the sun, and of course enjoying a glass of Chardonnay with her family and friends.
Muffy was preceded in death by her mother, Elizabeth Criswell Watson, and her father, Artemus DeLong Watson. She is survived by her three children, Whitney, Sam, and Elizabeth (CJ Swift), her dog Annie, as well as her siblings Elizabeth Watson DeHaven, Susan Rose Watson, Thomas Criswell Watson (Karen McGarvie Watson) and Samuel DeLong Watson (Yvonne Watson). She was also a loving aunt to 6 nieces and 4 nephews.
Muffy’s family would like to thank the team at Mayo Clinic in Jacksonville, FL as well as Dana-Farber in Boston, MA for their wonderful knowledge and care during her treatment. They would also like to thank the many, many family members and friends who were a constant source of support throughout the past year and a half.
A celebration of life is being planned for early Fall, details to follow. In lieu of flowers, please consider donating to the New Canaan Nature Center where Muffy served as a board member and spent many hours volunteering.
[This obituary appeared on Legacy.com.]
Muffy was such a wonderful fun and generous person. I am honored to have known her. My heart goes out to her family. She may be gone but will never be forgotten – her smile will live on forever.
Muffy was an incredible person and will be greatly missed. She was a fantastic supporter of many organizations in New Canaan, including the New Canaan Nature Center. As the article states, in lieu of flowers, the family wished people to consider a donation in her honor to the Nature Center. Here is the link for anyone who wishes to do so.
https://www.classy.org/give/490671/#!/donation/checkout
Thank you, Muffy, for all the ways you have positively impacted our community and all who knew you.
Muffy was just the best! So talented and generous of her time. She was just fabulous and a fun person in every way. You made the world a better place indeed. So privledged to have known you. Your kindness lives on in our hearts forever. Rest in Peace.
Debbie (Busby) Kunces Bob and family
I remember Muffy from when her brother Tom and I hung out together in grade school at Sunset Ridge. We were 2 years behind her but I will never forget praticsing her lines for Oliver, the 8th grade operatta our school always did every year. She had a hard time doing the scream at the end , now I know it was because she was such a positive person. Rest in peace and I miss your whole family.
S. Scott Smith
Muffy hired my daughter as a nanny in 1996 -7. I never met her but Jill enjoyed caring for Elizabeth especially and was treated very well by Muffy. I am sorry to come by this obituary and thankful for her kindness and provision she gave to our daughter. Jill passed away September 21, 2018 at 42 years of age from IBC cancer . Seeing this tonight 2/21/2006 made me remember Muffy and Sam and especially Elizabeth as Jill spoke of their short time together in New Canaan CT . David & Joanne Osborne -Eden NY