Carla Chervin

1963 - 2021

Carla Chervin

March 22, 1963 - January 21, 2021

Carla Maria Chervin — award-winning poet, mother, grandmother, instructional designer, and curriculum development director — died Thursday, Jan. 21, 2021, at the age of 57.

Born in NYC in 1963, Carla grew up an identical twin: stories of her childhood were filled with the imaginative games and adventures she created with her sister, Diana, and later, their younger brother, Charlie. Throughout Carla's life, she was beloved by all who met her, for her fierce intellect, analytical nature, inner strength, and the infinite reservoir of love she possessed for family and friends.

Carla's multi-layered, intricate writing—each line unspooling its own thread of deeper meanings—won her awards and recognition for poems such as "The Falcon was in Love," and "Sisters," as well as "Niobe's Prayer," and in 2017, her poem "A Song Sung by a Fish" was adapted to video form. When it came to her career, she was a self-professed "workaholic," who produced stunningly high-quality work at startling speeds. She worked with such companies as Educadium, ATI, General Motors, and CT Courses, and was the co-founder of SoftSkills Interactive, Two Steps Ahead, and PC Enterprises.

Whether in art, work, or friendship, Carla was a friend and mentor, who lent her passionate support to the ambitions of others, while simultaneously challenging them to grow even deeper into their craft. If there were a single message Carla imprinted on every person she met – a guiding philosophy in her life – it was, in her words, to always "Take the joy." She believed that something beautiful could be found in every moment, something she proved with her own life, as she endured hardships ranging from tragic deaths in the family, to a broken back, and her long struggle against cancer. Through all of this, she never stopped "taking the joy," and inspiring others to do the same.

Carla was a giant within her family. Today, she is survived by her mother, Ronda; aunt, Carla; mother-in-law, Jo; husband, Steve; sister, Diana; brother-in-law, Pete; closest friend, Jim; five children, Nicholas, Alexander, Maximilian, Zachary, and Martina; her daughters-in-law, Veronica and Ioana; niece, nephew, and niece's husband, Jennifer, Christopher, and Sean, as well as her great-nieces and great-nephew, Teresa, Julia, and Francis; and, of course, her legacy shines on brightly through her young grandchildren, Zaharina and Nathaniel, both of whom she had never expected to live long enough to meet, and both of whom she loved deeply.

Carla once wrote that "Every exhalation is a new letter in the alphabet of a life," and the life she breathed into the world will continue to thrive, long after her death. To all who knew her, may her memory be a blessing.