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Lisa, who grew up in Poughkeepsie, N.Y., had starred in more than 30 shows with the Hudson Valley light opera company when she married Asher and came west with him to the Napa Valley.

“She gave that up to marry me,” Asher said.Lisa, 54, supported her husband’s work with the symphony.

She performed at the symphony’s River Concert, and helped him to create the fifth-grade concerts that the Napa Valley Symphony has traditonally presented each year.

She also began teaching voice, and participated in performances at the White Barn in St.

Helena, as the arts scene in the valley slowly evolved.

“She really cherished the education piece,” her husband said.“She was here for Asher,” said Anna Carminita, a long-time friend and fellow performer, who directed one of Lisa’s performances at the White Barn and then became one of her vocal students.

“She was also such a talented singer and actress.

She was such an inspiration,” Carminita said.

“We are all so saddened by the news that we’ve lost our dear friend.”It’s incredible how much she was able to contribute even when she wasn’t on stage,” said Lisa de Bruin, a founding member of the Napa Valley Repertory Theater.

“Her intelligence transferred over into her sense of humor.

There was no one else like her.

She was so dilligent and c...

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