Marilyn, 76, has dedicated her life to music. At a young age, her father gave her and her siblings music lessons. Throughout her life, she continued working towards her passion of music. She taught many students over the course of 45 years in Raleigh. Several of her students even went on to attend Julliard and other prestigious music schools. Not only did Marilyn spend her time teaching, but as an avid pianist herself, she established The Piano Teachers Association.
Now, Marilyn volunteers countless hours of her time and brings musical joy by playing the piano to her fellow residents in her community, Heritage of Raleigh, in Raleigh, North Carolina. Her Wish of a Lifetime was to have a concert pianist come play at the Heritage. She also wished to play a duet with him.
In March 22, 2014, Wish of a Lifetime and Brookdale sent out one of her students, Jonathan, to visit her at the Heritage. Jonathan, a music teacher at the Hartt School and an international performer, is praised as one of the most talented and devoted young pianists. Marilyn taught him for 5 years from the time he was 13 to 17 years old.
Granting her wish, he performed a concert for the residents and played a duet with her. They have not played together since 1995, but they were able to play a few classical duets together like they did almost two decades ago. Marilyn had a magnificent time playing with Jonathan, and was glad they were able to capture the performance through photographs.
