Sylvia Willard - To Life! A Celebration of Vermont Jewish Women

About this film

Sylvia Willard was born in 1922 in North Adams, Massachusetts and died in 2006 in Rutland, Vermont. The family had a long history in New England. Her father grew up in Middlebury and her mother in North Adams, Massachusetts. After her parents married they opened a department store in Brandon, Vermont. Shapiro’s Department Store has been open for over 90 years. Sylvia and her sister Evelyn enjoyed happy memories of growing up in small town Vermont. At an early age Sylvia was interested in theater. During the 1930’s, her mother drove her to Middlebury to study drama with a Middlebury college professor. She learned to recite classical poetry, to do dramatic readings and won scholarships and drama contests. Both of her parents were very supportive of her choice to make a career in the theatre. Sylvia met her husband Howard when she was in high school. Her mother tricked her into meeting Howie while shopping at a music store in downtown Rutland where he was employed. It was awhile before they got married. Sylvia graduated from Syracuse University, moved to New York City to work as a production assistant for several Broadway shows. They married during the early years of World War II. Aft…

Directors & creators

DAVAR: The Vermont Jewish Women's History Project

Subjects

Vermont, Jewish women, theater, business, community building

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