Frieda Rabinovitz, a dedicated school psychologist and a strong advocate for children, died peacefully on March 2, 2026, at her home in Chilmark. She was 99 years old.
Frieda was a doting grandmother, a devoted mother, a devout friend, and a loving wife. She was married for more than 60 years to her late husband, Jason, who predeceased her and cherished her until his final breath. Just a shade over five feet tall, with sparkling blue eyes and jet-black hair, she was outgoing, full of questions, and always quick to smile.
She was adorable. Charming. And genuinely nice, with never a mean thing to say about anybody. Yet underneath that warm and friendly demeanor was a whole lot of spirit and resilience. Frieda worked with children who had lost their parents, who had immigrated from other countries, who lived in abusive homes, and who endured poverty and discrimination. She saw potential in children that others had missed, and she pushed hard for them to get the services they needed to thrive.
Frieda Pearlson was born July 14, 1926, in Cambridge, the youngest of three daughters, and older sister to a younger brother. Her parents had come to the U.S. from Lithuania. The family was poor, sharing a one-room apartment over their parents’ fruit store. She later recalled fun chats as a young girl with customers in the store, frequent trips to the library and the Saturday matinee, making up stories about people on the street with her sister Eleanor, and sharing Popsicles with her brother Paul.
It was her oldest sister, the late Jeanne Henry, an accomplished economics professor, who encouraged Frieda to learn Hebrew and then to go to college. With the support of a scholarship, she graduated with a degree in psychology from Jackson College, which was later absorbed into Tufts University.
While at Jackson, Frieda met Jason at a party in his dorm at the Harvard Business School, and she described it as love at first sight. She said she had already had other boyfriends, but she knew he was the one. He called her shortly after that, and a year or two later they were engaged and moving to New York City. She earned a master’s degree from Teachers College at Columbia University, and gave birth to their first child, Abby, in 1950.
Frieda decided to continue to pursue her professional career while raising Abby and the three children who followed: Judy, Daniel, and Jonathan. Her first job was as a social worker in Manhattan with the New York Association for New Americans, an agency that was part of the United Jewish Communities organization. After the family moved to Ardsley in Westchester County, she began working in nearby Irvington at Abbott House, a nonprofit child welfare agency that was founded in 1963 as an alternative to traditional orphanages. As Jason’s work required moves to Glencoe, Ill., then Mamaroneck, N.Y., and ultimately Los Angeles in 1976, she was determined to continue working, diligently submitting the paperwork necessary to obtain certification in those states, and working respectively in the Skokie public schools, the Yonkers public schools, and then the L.A. Unified School District. Her tenure in Los Angeles extended more than 20 years, and had her traveling to schools across the city. Among the schools she supported were Hoover, Union Avenue, Overland, and Westwood elementary schools, and Paul Revere Middle School.
In each of the places to which she moved, she made new and lasting friends, whom she welcomed into her extended family. People gravitated to her and she to them. Especially in Los Angeles, her younger colleagues embraced her and remained devoted to her until her death.
During the 1990s and first decade of the 2000s, Frieda and Jason enjoyed traveling around the country to national parks, vacationing in the Caribbean, and entertaining at their home in Los Angeles. Dear friends from all walks of life came together around their dinner table for good food, camaraderie, and spirited conversation. Frieda knew how to make everyone feel welcome (and seemingly could recall every detail of each friend’s life!). Above all, though, Frieda’s favorite activity was playing with her four grandchildren, Conrad, Tia, Callie, and Joshua. One of her greatest joys in life was watching them grow, and she saw and cherished each of them
When Jason developed Lewy body dementia, Frieda cared for him until his death in 2012. Afterward, as she aged, she was torn between leaving her home and the friends she loved and moving to be closer to her family. Over this period, Frieda was grateful for the care she received from Tony Dawson, Betty Dawson, and Sarita Casey.
It was with the encouragement of her children that she decided to move to Chilmark on Martha’s Vineyard, next door to her daughter Abby. There she lived in the house built by her late sister, Eleanor Pearlson, who co-founded the real estate agency Tea Lane Associates.
Arriving on Martha’s Vineyard just as the pandemic hit, Frieda was first cared for by Elaine King, who was passionately dedicated to keeping her safe while expanding her world of limited social interactions with drives around the Island.
During her last three years, Frieda became increasingly frail. She was lovingly cared for by her new caregiver, Julie Abbey, who could always make her laugh, and brought meaning to her life even as her world was getting smaller. In addition to Julie and Elaine, her full-time caregivers, Frieda was fortunate to have Thenzel Thomas and other wonderful part-time caregivers.
Throughout her life, Frieda was a voracious reader. Toward the end, her reading was limited to the New York Times, and later, when that paper was too large for her to handle, she shifted to People magazine — not as highbrow, but she was a romantic at heart. When she became too weak, Julie and Thenzel would help her turn the pages.
No matter how frail Frieda became, she never stopped caring for other people, and she never stopped being generous. Her heart remained open, and she had a smile for those around her until the very end.
In addition to daughter Abby and her husband Richard Stuart, Frieda is survived by her daughter, Judy Rabinovitz of New York City; her son, Daniel Rabinovitz, and wife Effie Chan of Brookline; and her son, Jonathan Rabinovitz, and wife Katherine Jennings of Bainbridge Island, Wash.; grandchildren Conrad Rabinovitz of Los Angeles, Tia Rabinovitz of Los Angeles, Callie Rabinovitz of New York City, and Joshua Rabinovitz, currently studying in Heidelberg, Germany; and her sister-in-law, Margaret Pearlson.
In lieu of flowers, please consider making a gift in Frieda’s memory to the Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society; the LAUSD Education Foundation; or her alma mater, Tufts University.
A funeral service will be held on Sunday, March 8, at 11 am at the Martha’s Vineyard Hebrew Center at 130 Center St. in Vineyard Haven.