With deep sadness and limitless gratitude we remember Stuart Dymzarov. He died at age 81 on April 30, 2026 in Atenas, Costa Rica, with his wife Marsha and family by his side in a place he loved, amid the palms, bougainvillea, toucans, and mountain views.

Stuart was born in 1944 in New York City to Martin and Yetta Dym. Brother Harvey was born four years later. The family settled in Great Neck, New York. After graduating from Union College in Schenectady, New York, Stuart joined the Peace Corps, serving in Colombia where he named his horse… Caballo (Horse). On his return he moved to Virginia for a short stint, living in a commune and working as a plumber’s apprentice before settling in Madison, Wisconsin. Harvey (who often describes Stuart as a best friend as well as a brother) followed him to Madison shortly thereafter.

While Stuart had a remarkable ability to simply be and enjoy the moment, he lived with drive and focus where it mattered. He was, above all, a man who showed up. His love was not only spoken but demonstrated daily. He was present when needed. He listened with genuine attention and without judgement.

Stuart was a passionate educator and visionary, helping to found Malcolm Shabazz City High School in 1971, Madison’s alternative high school. Stuart recognized the potential in students where others might not, and worked tirelessly to uplift, mentor, and inspire.

Today, Shabazz remains true to Stuart’s spirit, a community rooted in respect and flourishing with the promise of second chances and possibilities. Stuart’s legacy lives on in the countless lives he changed, the doors he opened, and the futures he will continue to help shape. Altering the famous Malcolm X slogan, “Revolution by any means necessary,” Stuart would say, “Education by any means necessary.”

After 28 years of service that included serving as the first principal and teaching math, the First Amendment, and banned books, he retired to work for Marsha at Homestead Title, the business she had started.

Stuart and Marsha raised the family in a large house on Rutledge Street across from Orton Park. It was a lively nexus and a popular place for their kids to hang out with friends. The house was an extension of Stuart and Marsha’s welcoming spirit. It often served as a way station or refuge for friends and family in need. Stuart was always supportive of his three children and an attentive and non-judgemental listener.

They also had a summer home in Michigan City, Indiana for many years. Vacations with extended family in the Indiana Dunes were filled with beach time playing with kids and later grandkids, basketball (he was a fierce rebounder), large raucous dinners, crossword puzzles, and reading. Stuart did not like sand, but went down to the beach every summer at the request of his children and then grandchildren.

Stuart and Marsha had a loving, supportive marriage for 52 years. They earned it. They often would joke that they were on their second marriage. In the early years, the two were passionate, headstrong, and sometimes epically argumentative. Both were too stubborn to do anything but work through it. They enjoyed decades of steady love, peace, and affection.

Stuart showed his love for Marsha in many ways. When Marsha retired and pursued her lifelong passion for dance, she enlisted Stuart as her dance partner to learn a choreographed routine based on Alvin Ailey’s Revelations. He learned, rehearsed, and performed the dance for friends and family. He played a somewhat less active role, happy to have Marsha dancing around him as she often did in life.

Stuart was fun-loving, quick to laugh, a spirited conversationalist, comfortable in his own skin, and happiest when surrounded by the people he loved. Whether gathered around a table for his weekly poker game, traveling around the world with Marsha, sharing stories late into the evening—or hanging out in the bathroom with friends to smoke a joint—he brought warmth and energy wherever he went. He was a man of remarkable character—smart, thoughtful, and deeply respected by all who knew him. But it was his passion, his generosity, and his ability to listen that set him apart. He had a rare gift for making others feel accepted, heard, and understood. To be loved or welcomed by Stuart felt like an affirmation and a blessing.

His absence leaves an immeasurable void, but his influence endures—in his family, in his students, in his friends, and in the community he helped build.

He will be missed beyond words and remembered beyond time. He is survived by his wife Marsha Dymzarov; daughters Becca Dymzarov (Andy Deremo) and Megan Pais (Haim Pais); son Michael Dymzarov; grandchildren Yemima Pais, Hannanel Pais, and Toby Dymzarov; brother Harvey Dym; and in-laws Herb and Alice White Zarov, Ira Zarov and Darcy Norville, and Jonathan Zarov and Ellen Samuels, as well as Linda Kietzer, former spouse of Jonathan Zarov.

A memorial will be held Wednesday, May 6, 12:30 to 2:30 pm at Atwood Music Hall, 1925 Winnebago St., Madison, WI 53704. All are welcome. Dress as you like. Stuart wouldn’t mind extremely casual. In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation to the Stuart Dymzarov Scholarship Fund, which will help students at Shabazz City High School further their education. Parking for Atwood Music Hall is available across the street in the Winnebago lot and around the corner at the North First St. Lot. The burial will take place at Forest Hill Cemetery, 1 Speedway Rd., at 3:30 pm.

You are invited to sit shiva with the family at the Dymzarov residence at 4101 Monona Dr., Apt. 102, Monona, 53716, Thursday and Friday evenings from 4 to 7 pm.

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Cress Funeral & Cremation Service

3610 Speedway Road Madison

(608) 238-3434