Obituary of Marjorie Martinelli

October 1, 2026

Marjorie Lynn Martinelli, née Bowers, passed away peacefully in her home in Greenwich Village, New York, on October 1, 2026 after a courageous 13-month battle with esophageal cancer. She was 71 years old.

Born in Coronado, California to Jeanne (née Curcio) and Henry Bowers, Marjorie was an educator, artist, author, gallerist, New Yorker, wife, daughter, mother, grandmother, sister, aunt, and loyal friend. Her kindness, gentle manner, patience, creativity, and fabulous style will be missed by all who were lucky enough to know her.

With a naval pilot for a father, Marjorie’s family moved every two years throughout her childhood. California, Florida, Guam, Rhode Island, Virginia. She lucked out when her dad had a double tour that allowed her to actually spend all four years at the same high school in Vienna, Virginia. Though moving that often wasn’t easy, she fondly recalled how her mother made each place feel like home.

She ended up at nearby Virginia Tech while her parents and three younger siblings moved back to Rhode Island, and then Michigan. As an art major, she worked in a variety of media and proudly displayed some of her incredible art from that time in her apartment - a large mixed media canvas, a stone sculpture, an oil painting landscape, tapestry weaving, jewelry. Her daughters grew up seeing those pieces every day and were in awe of their mother’s talents. It seemed there was nothing she couldn’t do.

After graduation, Marjorie pursued her lifelong dream of moving to New York City. This was the gritty New York of the 1970s, so moving there (to a basement apartment in Kew Gardens Queens during the Summer of Sam) was a brave and fiercely independent thing to do. She pursued graphic design, was thwarted by the doors closed to her by sexism, and ended up an apprentice at Tiffany’s when she walked out of her job selling coats at Bonwit Teller and across the street to the world famous jewelers with nothing more but her college jewelry design portfolio.

It was during this time that she met her husband Tom. In 1978 mutual friends invited them to dinner at the Chinatown mainstay Wo Hop. They had a fun meal, followed by pastries and coffee in Little Italy and a bar crawl, led by Tom, through the Village. Both attest to the fact that it was love at first sight. Within a year, they were married and moved into the Greenwich Village one-bedroom apartment where she has lived since, and where they raised their children.

In 1979, Tom and Marjorie quit their jobs (a lifelong feminist, Marjorie would not continue there once the employees found out the women were paid less than the men), pooled their combined knowledge of the art and printing worlds, and purchased A Clean, Well-Lighted Place, at 363 Bleecker St. They ran the art gallery, which specialized in contemporary prints and custom framing, until Tom’s retirement in 2012. The gallery was one of the last of the old-guard, independent shops on the block.

They had two daughters, Katherine and Christina, whom they raised in their cozy, art and book-filled apartment as well as the gallery. The girls attended nearby PS3, which welcomed parental involvement and where Tom and Marjorie were both regular classroom fixtures. It was here that Marjorie discovered her love of and gift for education.

With the encouragement of Tom and the immensely supportive PS3 staff, Marjorie pursued her Masters in Early Childhood and Elementary Education at NYU. She did her student teaching in Katherine’s 5th grade classroom, which might have been weird for other kids at other schools but felt perfectly natural for them.

Upon graduation, Marjorie secured a job at PS 77 Lower Lab School, where she happily worked as a first and second grade teacher for eight years while also teaching courses as an adjunct professor at Bank Street College of Education. Because of Marjorie’s brilliance in the classroom she was soon recruited to become a staff developer at the Teachers College Reading and Writing Project at Columbia University, where she proudly worked for over 20 years.

During that time, Marjorie accomplished so much. She was a staff developer, senior research associate, and co-director of Reading Rescue at the Reading & Writing Project. She led numerous leadership groups and presented at many national and international educational conferences. Marjorie traveled the country and the world teaching teachers and spreading her love of teaching reading and writing.

But she didn’t stop there. A talented writer herself, Marjorie became an author. She co-wrote many titles in the Units of Study in Writing Series for K-2 and for 3-5. In addition, Marjorie is co-author of Smarter Charts and Smarter Charts for Math, Science, and Social Studies. She is also the author of two Brain Quest Math decks for first and second grade.

Marjorie also returned to her artistic roots. In her later career she became the art director for the Reading and Writing project contributing original illustrations, graphics, and endless editing (both credited and uncredited) to the many publications for the Reading and Writing Project and, later, as a consultant to Mossflower. Her illustrations and handwritten and drawn charts became so essential to the visuals of The Project that they licensed her handwriting and turned it into a font which they used on numerous additional publications.

Besides education, Marjorie pursued so many other interests and passions. Origami was a longtime love. A member of OrigamiUSA, Marjorie always looked forward to their annual conferences and made the most incredible paper creations. She was incredibly knowledgeable about contemporary art and loved to visit galleries and museums. She loved to travel, to adventure with friends and family, and she loved to laugh.

But of all of her accomplishments, being a mother and grandmother were her proudest. She was the best Nana to Henry (12), Thomas (9), Phoebe (4), and Raffi (1). Each had their own special relationship with her. She loved them unconditionally, played with them no matter how tired she was or how sick she became, and read to them endlessly. She was not simply a kind and generous mother and grandmother, but an incredibly intelligent one who truly understood the hearts and minds of children; her children and grandchildren will miss her all of their lives.

Marjorie’s passing is a great loss; she touched the lives of so many. Marjorie is predeceased by her husband Tom, and is survived by her daughters Katherine and Christina; son-in-laws Evan and Rob; grandchildren Henry, Thomas, Phoebe, and Raffi; siblings Barbara, Holly, and Jim; and numerous beloved nieces and nephews. She will be so missed.

A memorial service will be held on Sunday, October 4 11am - 2pm at Greenwich Village Funeral Home. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the American Cancer Society or to OrigamiUSA, of which she was an avid member.

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