Lucille Field Goodman

Lucille Field Goodman, Ph.D., longtime resident of New Suffolk, a musician, activist, teacher and scholar, died at 92 on Sunday, Sept. 5, 2021. 

Music was her central love and work. She also worked tirelessly for lesbian, feminist and social justice causes. Described by her family, students and many friends as indomitable and magnetic, she had a ferocious, shining wit and the ability to charm, inspire and affect the lives of everyone she met. 

A trailblazer from an early age, Lucy earned her B.A. in music from Brooklyn College at 20 and an M.S. in music education from City University in 1971. Under the name Lucille Field, she performed classical vocal music throughout North America and Europe, including at Carnegie Recital Hall in 1980, with an emphasis on contemporary and historical women composers. Lucy taught music in elementary schools in Brownsville and Crown Heights before joining the faculty of Brooklyn College, where she taught music education and vocal performance for almost 20 years. In collaboration with other feminist professors, she established the first Women’s Studies Department at the college. Later in her career, she was awarded an honorary doctorate from CUNY and appointed professor emerita after her retirement. 

Lucy co-founded the International Alliance of Women in Music (IAWM) and the North Fork Women for Women Fund (now North Fork Women). 

In her later years, she taught voice on the North Fork of Long Island and published two collections of short stories about the lives of Jewish immigrant families and aging lesbians. 

At her death she was the venerated matriarch of the extended Feldman family in Boston, New Jersey, Toronto and throughout the world, including her two sisters, Marion Kazdan and Yolette Nussbaum; her daughter, Carol Goodman; her two grandchildren, Mikey and Leo; and her beloved partner of 42 years, Patsy Rogers. 

Arrangements were made by Horton-Mathie Funeral Home in Greenport. 

Donations can be made in Lucy’s memory to North Fork Women, Planned Parenthood Federation of America, the IAWM or another organization consistent with Lucy’s values.

This is a paid notice.