Meg Zweiback was born in 1948 in Los Angeles and was raised in the Pacific Palisades. She passed on Saturday night peacefully in her sleep after a valiant yearlong battle with Leukemia. She bonded with four wonderful women at the Westlake School for Girls who have sustained her and each other throughout their lives. As a 16 year old freshman at UC Santa Cruz she saw another freshman and decided he would be the man she would marry. She wisely waited some time to tell him. Meg and Zack Wasserman were a couple for over 51 years and celebrated their 47th anniversary on June 14 this year. They adored each other. They have two wonderful sons, Jake and Michael, and now an amazing daughter-in-law, Alicia Dantzker. Part of Meg's joy this past year was seeing Michael and Alicia's June wedding in Mendocino.
Meg was one of the first Pediatric Nurse Practitioners, with degrees from UCSF and a Master's in Public Health from UC Berkeley. She developed a private practice helping families with young children solve problems with poop, sleep, sibling, schools, and everyday life. Meg was a featured columnist for Parents' Press, a speaker and contributor to BANANAS, and author of four books about parenting published in 8 languages. Meg was also an Associate Clinical Professor of Nursing at the University of California, San Francisco. She learned hypnosis techniques and used them in her practice to help children use their own talents to deal with pain and anxiety. Her advice helped many families deal with their problems to help their children be happier and become healthier adults. There are countless children in the Bay Area and beyond who have benefited from Meg's counsel, her wit and her wisdom. Much of her advice can still be found at: BringingUpKids.com.
Meg had a great passion for art, theater and ballet. For almost 30 years she was a docent at the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art. She and Zack loved to travel together and often alternated trips to Italy with snorkeling in faraway seas. She believed in and taught "Meg Math" - how to use savings, refunds, credits to apply to other desired objects - a way to be ever optimistic. She will be missed by her family, her friends and the many people she has helped. Her wisdom and her memory will sustain them.
A Chapel Service will be held at Home of Eternity Cemetery (Mountain View Cemetery) at 1:00 PM on Tuesday, September 12th. We will have a Celebration of her life later this Fall. In lieu of flowers please make donations to The Meg Foundation or to BANANAS Child Care Resource and Referral Agency. The Meg Foundation teaches medical professionals and parents how to empower children and families to prevent and relieve pain, and during the last year of her life Meg was a major advisor to its founders, Dr. Jody Thomas and Dr. Leonora Kuttner. Meg was a longtime volunteer parent educator, featured speaker and supporter of BANANAS. Donations may be mailed to The Meg Foundation, 10169 E.28th Ave., Denver, CO 80238 or at www.gofundme.com/meg-foundation and to BANANAS at donate.bananasbunch.org/