Tamara Jane Razi

Tamara Razi, 63, passed away on September 19, at home surrounded by family. The cause was ovarian cancer. Tamara was brilliant, empathetic, insightful, beautiful, warm, funny and creative. She enriched so many lives through her compassion and energy, her understanding of character and behavior, her unique qualities of mind and culture, and her ability to always find positive facets of daily life and nature.

Tamara’s resilience and grace in the face of a forbidding disease inspired everyone who knew her. Few people have been as diligent in managing their treatment and self-care, which undoubtedly helped her over the years. Since first being diagnosed in 2007, there were many rounds of treatment and remission, with increasing physical challenges. Yet Tamara was never defined by her health issues. She made needed compromises and forged ahead with life.

Tamara Razi was born in northern California and spent much of her early childhood in Arizona, including cherished time on her grandparents’ ranch in Yuma. Her years from middle school were in the Bay Area, where she attended the Castilleja School in Palo Alto. She was an undergraduate at Yale University, concentrating on philosophy and literature. Pursuing an interest in psychiatry, she took pre-med courses at the University of California, Santa Cruz, followed by medical school at the George Washington University. Her fellowship in child and adolescent psychiatry was at the Child Study Center at the Yale School of Medicine. Subsequently, she completed psychoanalytic training at the Washington Baltimore Psychoanalytic Institute.

During a long and rewarding career, Tamara worked in various psychiatric positions in the New Haven area before moving to Washington, DC to establish the child and adolescent psychiatry unit at Children’s National Hospital. Happily, she met her future husband, Peter, not long after moving to Washington. She later worked at Sheppard-Pratt in Maryland, the Foundation Schools near Washington, DC, and in private practice for many years.

Tamara Razi was a versatile psychiatrist and a skilled psychoanalyst who also wrote poetry and memoir, developed a painterly eye, and could engage with Debussy or Mozart on the piano. She drew on her foundations in philosophy, art and literary studies, to illuminate many areas of life. Clearly, she had a shadow calling as a film essayist, as her sharp insights enlivened a movie-watching series with friends during the COVID lockdown. Her insights from social theory regarding the current political spectacle were always intriguing.

The joy of her life was her family. Tamara and Peter shared a warm and engaging marriage for 24 years. She was a devoted mother to Daniel and Claire, offering insight, guidance, humor, and inspiration. Tamara’s energy and curiosity animated us all. Despite the uncertainty of her health, she was able to see them through young adulthood and to enjoy their many successes and milestones. We enjoyed many family trips and events. She had definite views about education and household affairs, which we were all best advised to follow.

Tamara Razi is survived by her mother, Barbara Whitman, husband Peter Lewis, children Daniel Lewis and Claire Lewis, and remembered by countless friends and loved ones. We are grateful to have had her in our lives, and that will never be lost.