Lucy Therese Scarbrough

Lucy Scarbrough Obituary On June 13th, Dr. Lucy Scarbrough, 92, passed away quietly in her home, surrounded by her children and grandchildren. A resident of El Paso for nearly 60 years, her loving and joyful spirit brought gifts of music, joy, and love to her family, friends, and community. She was preceded in death by her husband, Dr. Paul Scarbrough, who was her constant companion and greatest supporter. She will be missed by the many people whose lives she touched, including those of her surviving sister Christine, her four children Paul, Mark, Sue Ann, and Ginger, nine grandchildren, three great-grandchildren, and many nieces and nephews. During her early years in Santa Rosa, New Mexico, Dr. Scarbrough cultivated her love of music. She earned degrees at the prestigious American Conservatory in Chicago, studying with internationally recognized pianists and winning numerous prizes and awards. She taught at the renowned Chicago Musical College and was a featured soloist with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra and the Evanston Symphony Orchestra, where her performances were highly acclaimed. She met and married the love of her life, Paul Scarbrough, in Santa Rosa. They moved to Albuquerque, New Mexico, where she taught at St. Pius X High School, formed the Albuquerque Interparochial Choir, and served as Music Director for the Albuquerque Light Opera Company. Dr. Scarbrough continued her musical legacy after moving to El Paso. She was actively involved in the El Paso Community as musical theatre director, accompanist for the Antonio Triana Flamenco Troupe, church organist at St. Matthew Catholic Parish and St. Patrick Cathedral, and founder of Opera a la Carte, which evolved to become the El Paso Opera company. She developed a long association with the El Paso Community College, where she touched the lives of thousands in the classroom, through her stirring graduation speeches, and through the musical events she founded, including the EPCC Arts Festival, the El Paso Civic Orchestra, and the El Paso Chopin Piano Festival which celebrated its 25th anniversary in 2019. She gained national recognition when the Chopin Festival was featured in Clavier magazine. Thereafter, she served on the Selection Jury for The Chopin Foundation of the United States' 7th, 8th, and 9th National Chopin Competitions in Miami, FL. Throughout her professional career, she was honored with superlative reviews by music critics and the press, praising her “standing-room only” performances, her “rare power and sensitivity,” and “star quality,” and she was called “highly-respected,” “memorable,” and “marvelous.” Dr. Scarbrough was recognized by the President of the United States, the Governor of Texas, and the Vatican for her artistic contributions, and she received numerous awards including the Minnie Stevens-Piper higher education award of Texas, the Burlington Foundation Teaching Award, the National Teaching Excellence Award of U.T. Austin, El Paso Women’s Hall of Fame, the Hidalgo award for service to the Hispanic community, the Hispanic Heritage award, and most recently the Polish government presented her with the award “Meritorious for Polish Culture.” A celebration of life will be held on Tuesday, June 23, 2020 at Sunset Funeral Home. All are invited to join the celebration through a Facebook Live broadcast link that will be available at 11:30 AM on that date. A recording will be available that same evening in our online registry at www.sunsetfuneralhomes.net https://www.facebook.com/sunsetfuneralhome/