Obituary
Sarah was born February 21, 1950, in Baltimore, the third daughter of Samuel H. and Frances D. Willner. For most of 1967, our mother, with Sarah beside her, battled cancer but died in December.
In 1972, Sarah graduated from Emerson College, intent on becoming an actor. She worked at Ropes and Gray law firm, saving for her move to New York, but even then, she was politically conscious.
In 1976, she lived in Philadelphia, working for the presidential campaign of U.S. Senator Fred Harris. A decade later, she joined the Great Peace March for Global Nuclear Disarmament. From March to November, 1986, the group walked from Los Angeles to Washington, D.C., and Sarah changed the course of her life. The writings she created during that march are archived at Swarthmore College.
Harnessing her formidable intellect, writing and performance skills, she established herself as a professional activist, joined the Seeds of Peace group and, without renouncing her surname, became known as Sarah Seeds, described in activistfacts.com as a "'Non-violence' trainer & legal assistant, the Ruckus Society; full-time, professional protester & activist spokesperson; arrested in 9 states."
In some venues, she argued for nonviolent activism wearing suits and carrying briefcases; in others, she wore Dolly-Parton-style brown wigs and donned elegant attire, becoming "Carlotta Exotica," a powerful performer, persuader, former Vegas showgirl and friend of Elvis Presley.
In 1994, in just 48 seconds, she argued her position, methods and passion for ecology in Cove Mallard: Defending the Big Wild. ( https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yDe4czJfi6I at 13:12- :40 and 15:31-:51). For her actions during this campaign, she "received 20 days . . . said that she had no remorse and insisted on being jailed. She refused to administer her own punishment by accepting probation." With unimpeachable integrity, she refused to violate her principles.
By 2000, Sarah was recognized as a media savvy mediator, who simultaneously interceded for both sides of adversarial groups. She advised police, in advance, what demonstrators planned to do, then advised the demonstrators how police planned to respond, thus reducing the likelihood of violence caused by groups misunderstanding their opponents' actions.
Described as a "trainer of trainers," her insistence on nonviolence was prescient. In December, 2002, Middletown (CT) Press quoted her. "If demonstrators learn empathy for those that they oppose politically, or even physically, potentially violent situations can be defused, . . . Instead of seeing just some cop, you'll see a guy with maybe a family, . . . . the person on the other side of the line is human, too.'"
She continued her leadership, and in August 2010, the Associated Press reported her arrest and incarceration in Charleston, WV, for demonstrating "to protest mountaintop removal coal mining." This was one of her last major endeavors.
In August, 2013, at age 63, Sarah was diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease. By January, 2014, unable to live independently, she had returned to Baltimore to live with our sister, Emma, and brother-in-law, Jacob Exler, whom she called her "brother-in-love," a far more appropriate term. They cared for her until February, 2019, when she suffered a broken hip.
Following hip surgery, she entered King David Nursing and Rehab Center in Baltimore. But advancing Alzheimer's Disease precluded her from engaging in rehab. She could not stand, nor could she speak cogently.
Sarah "Seeds" Willner remained at King David as a permanent resident and passed away at 3:35 p.m. Friday, July 3, 2020. She once said she knew she could not change the world but hoped that, when she died, she would have done her best to do so. And she did.
Services are private, please omit flowers. Contributions in her memory may be sent to Alzheimer's Association of Maryland : https://www.alz.org or Tree Planted in Israel (No picture frames, please)
https://www.shiva.com/plant-a-tree/ or Tree planted in a U.S. Forest: https://www.alivingtribute.org or
Contribute to Nukewatch: https://nukewatchinfo.org
Arrangements by Sol Levinson. www.sollevinson.com