Lynn Friedman

Friedman, Lynn
1933 - 2021
Lynn Friedman, teacher, political activist, beloved wife, mother, and grandmother, died peacefully at home on August 22, 2021, at the age of 88. Dr. Friedman earned her Ph.D. in Statistics from the University of Chicago at the age of 60. She authored studies on gender patterns in secondary and higher education STEM subjects. She taught mathematics and statistics at DePaul University, University of Minnesota, and the Ohio State University, among others. In 2020, she was elected to the Franklin County Democratic Central Committee. Lynn (her middle name) grew up in Evanston, Illinois, completed a B.A. at Mills College in Oakland, CA, and studied graduate-level math at the University of California, Berkeley, where she met her husband, Avner Friedman. Before marrying, Lynn converted to Reform Judaism. In recent years, she and her husband joined the Congregation Tifereth Israel. Lynn was a reader, a pianist, a lifelong lover of classical and folk music, and an advocate for progressive causes. She organized against corporate personhood, fracking, and educational inequities. She campaigned for gun control, and she was a faithful supporter of the independent Chicago bookstore, "Women and Children First," in its early years. Lynn was delighted to learn recently that her great grandfather, former governor of Iowa, William Larrabee, published an 1893 book, The Railroad Question, that warned of unchecked corporate power. Lynn was preceded in death by her sister, Julie. She is survived by her husband, Avner; her four children, Alissa (Victoria Herzog), Joel (Patricia), Naomi, and Tamara; her five grandchildren, Aaron, Joshua, Talia, Coriel, and Tobias. A graveside service will be held at 12:30pm on Wednesday, August 25 at New Tifereth Israel Cemetery, 2565 Performance Way. For a link to the Zoom please email zoom1@epsteinmemorial.com. In lieu of flowers, contributions in her memory may be made to the Mid-Ohio Food Bank or the League of Women Voters of Metropolitan Columbus. Online guest book at www.epsteinmemorial.com