Obituary for Lynne Kate Prives

Lynne Kate Prives (Abern) passed away peacefully on Friday, June 30th at 75 years young in San Francisco. In her final years of her life, she was able to fulfill her wish of living close to her children, Todd and Elizabeth, who relocated from Boston to the Bay Area early in their careers.
Lynne was born in Chicago, Illinois to Joseph and Beatrice Abern. As a young and only child, Lynne was profoundly influenced by her aunt, Marilyn Carrow, who was married to her mother’s brother, Dr. Leon Carrow. It was Lynne’s Aunt Marilyn who introduced her to fashion, art, design, and culture-passions of hers that would last a lifetime.
Lynne started her college career at Washington University and transferred to Boston University where she received a BA in History and met the father of her children, Melvin, who was a law student. Together Lynne and Mel spent six months traveling abroad after they married. Although the marriage didn’t endure, she often told stories of their extended honeymoon to her children hoping to instill in them her love of travel, art, and food. Lynne later received a MA in Special Needs Education from Lesley College and worked as a special needs coordinator for the Medford Public Schools for 24 years. Having survived thyroid cancer as a teenager, Lynne took her health seriously and was a skilled researcher and advocate for herself and children teaching them to leave “no stone unturned.” Her doctor’s often jokingly referred to her as Dr. Lynne because of her knowledge and interest in medicine.
Lynne was fortunate to retire early and pursue her true passions of interior design and self care. She enjoyed renovating her apartment on Boston’s waterfront, taking yoga and pilates classes, shopping on Newbury Street, and keeping up with the latest news-she always had CNN on in the background at home. She dressed impeccably, usually in black and never left the house without a full face of makeup. Lynne was proud that people thought she was younger than her chronological age! She is survived by her son, Todd of San Francisco, daughter, Elizabeth, and son in law, Daniel Mitchell of Los Altos. Sadly, Lynne passed away before the birth of her first grandchild, a granddaughter, who hopefully will have her grandma’s big, blue eyes, and great sense of style.

A gathering will be held in the Spring of 2024 in Boston and memorial gifts may be made to the End Well Project (https://endwellproject.org/) or the Jewish Home and Senior Living Foundation (https://www.jhslf.org/give-today/).