Anne Strong Tobias – Lifelong lover of music, art and literature

It can be said that a well-lived life is one in which you share your interests and joy with others. A lifelong lover of music, art, and literature, Anne Strong Tobias exemplified this idea, spending much of her time creating art, bird-watching, and entertaining her friends and family at her farm in Rhinebeck.

The soundtrack for many of these pursuits was WMHT-FM — hours of every day accompanied by the strains of classical music selections. When it came time to write her will, Anne remembered these daily hours of beauty, solace and inspiration, and chose to share her love of classical music with others by making a gift to WMHT in her will. She gave the gift, noting her "hope that WMHT radio will continue to play the classical music of all countries and instruments as in the past."

While a native of Illinois, Anne spent most of her adult life in New York State, split between Manhattan and Rhinebeck. She was a woman of diverse interests and talents. Having studied at Smith College and the Art Institute of Chicago, Anne was an accomplished painter and enjoyed sculpting.

Her father was Walter Ansel Strong, owner, editor, and publisher of the Chicago Daily News. With this background, Anne went on to found a magazine in 1958 called "Young Americans" and served as its editor and publisher. In the sixties, Anne and her husband Jaromir bought a farm in Rhinebeck, where they had a trout hatchery. By the mid-seventies, Anne sold her home in Manhattan and shifted her daily life to Rhinebeck, where she hosted tennis tournaments and swimming parties and especially enjoyed visits from her family and friends.

A gracious hostess, Anne shared her love of classical music by opening her home to house concerts sponsored by the Rhinebeck Chamber Music Society. Over the years, when Anne was house-bound, she would host the guest musicians in her home which gave her the opportunity to listen to the upcoming program at home.

After discovering WMHT Anne became a devoted listener and member, steadily supporting the station for the next three decades.

WMHT truly became Anne's "Classical Companion" as she became less mobile and listened more than six hours a day. As Anne's relationship with WMHT deepened, her level of commitment to giving also increased. She started with small gifts, and steadily increased her giving. She was not an extravagant giver while she was alive, but when she wrote her will, she made a substantial gift to WMHT.

It is with great gratitude that WMHT has received this gift, which is being used to fund a significant priority of WMHT's Capital Initiatives. Due to Anne's kindness and generosity, WMHT is replacing and upgrading the radio technology platform which is used to fulfill its mission of offering classical music throughout each day, week and year.

In giving a gift to WMHT-FM, her classical companion, Anne Strong Tobias has truly given a gift to all of us. Thank you Anne — for your legacy of a well-lived life and sharing your love of classical music.