Jack Raskin
Jack Raskin considers himself fortunate for having the most creative mom who ever existed. Her enthusiasm for life and the beauty she saw everywhere was a source of inspiration to all of those who loved her. She painted continuously sometimes even on the kitchen floor and was a proficient artist whose works appeared in art shows and exhibitions. The reward for painting she would say is that “you learn to see”. This gives you a rich source of entertainment for the rest of your life.
As a kid growing up on the streets of New York City Jack’s passion was sports but he could not help dabbling in art with his mom when she would say “it’s time to warm up the brushes.” Art was put on hold during college, medical school and while raising four great kids who he considers his most successful and yes, creative endeavor. He has tried in his art and in life to keep a boy’s heart and a man’s head.
The joy he found with children motivated his selection of Child Psychiatry as his medical specialty. After spending time in the armed forces he worked at Children’s Hospital in Seattle, was a professor at the University of Washington finally practicing for over forty years in Bellevue before he retired.
Retirement provided time to write a book about raising children. A suggestion by one of his then adult kids that they take some water color lessons seemed like it would be fun and since then a day rarely passes that he does not spend at least an hour or two watching the colors flow.