The Napa Valley arts community lost a gifted and vibrant member when Lisa Raboy passed away from cancer Saturday. A memorial celebration of her life is scheduled for Saturday at 1 p.m. at the First Presbyterian Church in Napa.

Lisa made the valley her home when her husband, Asher, became the conductor of the Napa Valley Symphony 17 years ago, but her own credentials as a singer and actress were equally stellar,

“When I met her she was the reigning diva at a Gilbert and Sullivan company,” Asher said. “I fell in love with her on stage and then I had a chance to conduct a performance there.”

He said he was emboldened to ask her out, after the run was over, because of “a look” she gave him from the stage when he was in the conductor’s pit. “Later I told her that that look of love had given me courage.” Lisa, he said, was sorry to disillusion him, but she told him that look had actually been because she’d forgotten her contact lenses. “It gave a whole new meaning to the phrase, ‘Love is blind,” he said.

Lisa, who grew up in Poughkeepsie, N.Y., had starred in more than 30 shows with the Hudson Valley light opera company when she married Asher and came west with him to the Napa Valley. “She gave that up to marry me,” Asher said.

Lisa, 54, supported her husband’s work with the symphony. She performed at the symphony’s River Concert, and helped him to create the fifth-grade concerts that the Napa Valley Symphony has traditonally presented each year. She also began teaching voice, and participated in performances at the White Barn in St. Helena, as the arts scene in the valley slowly evolved. “She really cherished the education piece,” her husband said.

“She was here for Asher,” said Anna Carminita, a long-time friend and fellow performer, who directed one of Lisa’s performances at the White Barn and then became one of her vocal students. “She was also such a talented singer and actress. She was such an inspiration,” Carminita said. “We are all so saddened by the news that we’ve lost our dear friend.”

It’s incredible how much she was able to contribute even when she wasn’t on stage,” said Lisa de Bruin, a founding member of the Napa Valley Repertory Theater. “Her intelligence transferred over into her sense of humor. There was no one else like her. She was so dilligent and committed to so many ways, many unsung.”

“It’s amazing how many ways our lives were intertwined,” said Bill Leigon, another member of Napa Rep, who is organizing Saturday’s memorial service. He said he and Lisa sang together in Napa Valley Chorale, and with the Napa Valley Symphony; Lisa worked for his wine company, Wimbledon Wine, and he was her voice student. “She was also a gifted photographer,” Leigon said. “We used her work for the company. You have Renaissance men; she was a Renaissance woman. She was brilliant, quick witted and just an amazingly talented woman.”

Jamie Butler, who teaches choral music at Napa High School, was another of Lisa Raboy’s students. “I needed someone to help me prepare for college auditions,” he said. “She made time for me — that she really didn’t have — in her very busy schedule. She was kind and I was very thankful for her and grateful for the time she gave up to help me, but from what I heard, that was typical of her kindness and generosity. She was very talented and really knew her stuff.”

Carminita, a founding member of Napa Rep, also was the one who brought Lisa Raboy in as associate music director when the company formed in 2001; in addition to that role Lisa proved to be a versatile and gifted actress with a memorable comic touch. She made her debut as an actress with the troupe, playing a maid in Noel Coward’s “Hayfever.” When she appeared on the stage dressed as a Nordic Valkyrie complete with horned headress and broke into a glass-shattering solo, the crowd erupted into a spontaneous ovation. Lisa went on to play roles in “She Loves Me,” “Tartuffe” and “On the Verge.” She also assisted her husband who was conductor when the Napa Rep presented “1776.”

“I was absolutely shocked to learn of her death, and I extend my deepest sympathies to Asher,” said Margrit Biever Mondavi. “As Bob and I knew her, she was always friendly, always active at the Opera House. She was a wonderful actress, a beautiful lady. I am only sorry that I didn’t know her better.”

“She was a true diva in the best sense of the word,” Asher said. “She didn’t have enough time here but I would have said that if she was 90.”

L. Pierce Carson contributed to this story.