Margaret “Willi” Zildjian (nee McTavish) died peacefully on February 14, 2017, in Brunswick, Maine.

Willi is remembered by all who knew her as a well-educated and well-travelled woman with a deep appreciation of nature and a keen curiosity about the world. Born on August 14,1929, in Wollaston, Massachusetts, Willi attended the Woodward School (Class of 1947) and Radcliffe College (Class of 1951).

She married Robert Zildjian “Bob” in 1951 and the couple moved to Norwell. There, Willi raised three children, cultivated her gardens, and continued her interest in conservation. Her sixty- acre farm abounded with carefully planted perennial gardens, her famous gladiolus, and hundreds of wild orange lilies that she rescued from fields in the path of highway construction. She kept a greenhouse filled with calla lilies and fragrant hyacinth, a large vegetable garden, apple and pear trees, and even bees. Everywhere Willi lived she planted a garden, from Canada to Bermuda.

A valuable and informed companion and partner to her husband, Willi travelled the world for the family’s cymbal companies, making many lasting friendships and allies in the music business. She and Bob crisscrossed the United States many times, worked trade shows in Germany and the United Kingdom, and attended industry gatherings in New York, Chicago, Paris, and Milan.

Together they enjoyed opera in Vienna and symphony in London. They explored Egyptian tombs and the African Savanna. They hiked in the Swiss Alps, skied Mont- Tremblant, and fished in Argentina, Venezuela, and off their island in the Bahamas. During her lifetime, Willi set foot on every continent except Antarctica and visited over thirty nine countries.

After the split from Zildjian Company in 1981, Willi became more prominent in the industry as she and Bob went on to establish Sabian Cymbals in Canada. Willi dedicated herself to the business with her characteristic verve and graciousness, hosting dealers, distributors, and drummers from all over the world at the rural factory in Canada and at the company’s fly fishing camp along the Miramichi.

Willi is survived by: her children, Bill, Sally, and Andy, their spouses, eight grandchildren, four nieces, and two nephews.

Funeral service will be held at the St. James United Church of Canada in Woodstock, New Brunswick, on March 4, 2017 at 11am. A reception will follow at the Best Western Hotel, Woodstock.

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to: Woodward School, Planned Parenthood, the National Audubon Society, or the Portland Symphony Orchestra (ME).