Supporting Moffat Library in Rhonda's name

Our dear friend Rhonda Martinson passed on May 19, 2020. She is survived by her husband, Douglas Martinson, who had suffered a stroke a few days before her death. As the valedictorian of her graduating class from SUNY New Paltz, Rhonda worked at CORE Lab in Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory of Columbia University from 1979 to 1982. She was a beautiful and warm-hearted person to her friends, neighbors, and many of Doug’s colleagues, students, and staff at the university. She is truly missed by many. A funeral service is not currently scheduled due to the difficult circumstances surrounding the pandemic. Rhonda especially loved the arts: from culinary explorations to collecting original paintings and sculptures as well as  enjoying film and literature. To honor Rhonda, Doug wishes to donate to their favorite local library,  Moffat Library.

Moffat Library is a public library serving 25,000 people in Washingtonville, New York. It was built in 1887 by David Moffat, a native of Washingtonville who made a fortune in railroad, mining, and finance.  The library was declared to be “the diffusion of useful knowledge”. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1994 and changed to a public library from a private one in the following year (Wikipedia).  The library has always been Rhonda and Doug’s favorite place in their community.

I am organizing this fundraiser on behalf of Doug and his friends. All donations, subtracting fees, will go to Moffat Library in Rhonda’s name. The fundraising will be ended on July 1, 2020.

Xiaojun Yuan
Lamont Research Professor
LDEO of Columbia University