Claire Isaacs Wahrhaftig

I had the honor to be Claire´s primary care provider from around 2017-2021. One of the hardest decisions of my career was to resign from the Over Sixty Clinic in Berkeley where I became acquainted her, because I had developed such a bond with patients like Claire. This may seem odd, but I have been monitoring for Claire´s passing since I resigned in 2021, because I would have very much liked to have been at her celebration of life. Despite my best efforts, I had a number of personal concerns...

Listened to Claire´s stories of her experiences during the civil rights times at Stagebridge Lunchtime Storytelling sessions . She was truly a trailblazer activist for human rights & a wonderful storyteller.

I knew Claire when she was the director of the Junior Art Center in Los Angeles. She made lit a magical place. She was so enthusiastic and full of good ideas. She had a great staff. I was on the board. We raised money with a wine tasting event. It was a great time.

Claire and I attended musical theatre, storytelling and memoirs classes at Stagebridge. We also served on the board together. I was always impressed by her wealth of life experiences her commitment to the arts and civil rights. Her ability to create riveting stories was amazing. One story I loved, was how as San Francisco Commissioner of the Arts, she rode in the Pride parade in 1983. She decided to dress up as Gertrude Stein. She used makeup and created a costume from a Picasso painting of...

Kisser of presidents. Moshpitt dancer. Hip hop dancer and storyteller extraordinaire. Claire, you were a narvel of history of Forrest Gump proportions. I miss you and love you and will always be in awe.

What a wonderful portrait of a beautiful, unforgettable woman. Among hundreds of memories of Claire, one in particular stands out. In 2015 we (me, Claire, my husband Dennis Elliott and friend Paul Lufkin) attended a special event commemorating the 1915 Panama Pacific International Exposition at the Palace of Fine Arts Theater. The event included an auction, with the winner having the privilege of conducting the orchestra with a special gold baton. Guess who won the auction and conducted the...