Lydia Marguerite Willis

Dr. Lydia Marguerite Willis, nee Lydia Muller, beloved by many, died peacefully on Nov. 10, 2014. She was born on May 3, 1924, in Geneva, Switzerland. Her parents were Henri Jacob and Frieda Muller. She earned her PhD in psychology from the University of Geneva, studying under Jean Piaget, a pioneer in studying developmental stages of children’s mental growth. Dr. Piaget wrote the preface to Lydia Willis’ book, Research on the Understanding of Algebraic Rules for Children (1956). At the suggestion of Dr. Piaget, Lydia Willis left Geneva for the United States in 1953, to research and share his ideas internationally. In 1958, she married Dr. Harper Willis. She researched and taught the application of Piaget’s theories at the University of Minnesota and Arizona State University. In Minnesota, she had a television program on Dr. Piaget’s ideas. She encouraged educators and parents to let children take the lead in learning. As Time magazine wrote: “For Piaget, the child is the real educator, not the teacher.” Dr. Willis applied that in teaching math and reading to her children, Dorothy and John Willis, in part by writing many of her children’s own stories and letting them read those stories. The family moved to Lake Charles, La., in 1969, where Lydia practiced clinical psychology along with her husband, who practiced psychiatry until his death in 1997. Dr. Harper Willis asked their children, Dorothy and John, to take her to Switzerland to see her family there. They brought her to Switzerland every year after that through 2013. In September 2013, she celebrated her 90th birthday early near Geneva, with her brothers Willy Muller and Jean-Pierre Muller, their families, and other friends and relatives. She lived in Lake Charles from 1969 until 2008 when she moved to Houston to be with her daughter, Dr. Dorothy Willis.

She is survived by her children, John and Dorothy Willis; her grandchildren, Harper and Acadia Willis; her brothers, Willy and Jean-Pierre; Dorothy’s partner, Mayola Martin; and John’s wife, Cynthia Howlett-Willis.

The family is so thankful for the wonderful and loving care given to her by so many. The family will receive friends on Saturday, Nov. 15, 2014, at 10 a.m. at Forest Park Lawndale Funeral Home. A funeral service will be held at 11 a.m. that day, with interment immediately following.