Annabelle Clayton of Port Washington: Massage therapist, health food innovator

Annabelle Clayton was a force of nature who left a lasting mark on everything she touched, friends and relatives said. She strove for a personal connection with everyone she met, ensuring that few would ever forget her.

As a massage therapist, she was known for a natural talent that attracted clientele from all over the world. As a businessperson, she was an innovator who was on the cutting edge of the health food trend before it even got started. As a mother and a friend, she was as caring and kind as they come, never short on generosity.

"She was this very dynamic person that was incredibly empathetic, extraordinary in so many ways, and cared about every single thing around her, from the little bumble bee that was flying around in her garden to her friends or people she met on the street," said daughter Tatiana Clayton Mouarbes, 29, of Port Washington. "She cared so deeply and gave so much of herself."

Clayton, a native Australian who moved to the United States in 1986 and lived in Port Washington for the past 29 years, died Feb. 7 from complications of COVID-19 at Long Island Jewish Medical Center in Queens, her daughter said. She was 61.

"Annabelle had a heart as big as the country from which she came," said friend Lisa Bondy, 60, of Port Washington.

Clayton spent a decade traveling the world with rock star Lenny Kravitz, serving as his personal health coach and massage therapist. After meeting Kravitz early in his career, she watched him rise into one of the premier acts in the world and remained close with him even after she stopped touring in 1999.

"She connected with him spiritually, artistically, creatively," said Mouarbes, who is Kravitz’s goddaughter. "She is a people person. She counted her riches in life through her relationships."

"Annabelle was life," Kravitz said at a Zoom memorial service that Newsday was granted access to. "She taught you to live your life courageously, to be authentic, to live without fear, and to love unconditionally."

Clayton had countless friends from all walks of life, meeting many of them through her international massage practice, which she owned for more than 35 years. In addition to her life as a healer, she was a champion of organic food and holistic health dating back to the 1980s, well before that lifestyle was in vogue.

Clayton owned several organic food businesses, including the Good Food Garage, an organic and health food supermarket that operated in Port Washington from 1995 to 1998. In addition to teaching organic food and healthy living classes, Clayton served on the Port Washington School District nutrition committee, which pushed for healthier lunch options, her daughter said.

"She helped to change the school menus, adding bovine growth hormone-free milk, making sure there were gluten-free and dairy-free options every day, as well as a hot soup," Bondy said. "And this was 30 years ago, this was like speaking Greek and pushing a rock up a hill."

But Clayton was never discouraged by the process, instead emboldened by her beliefs and buoyed by an endless spirit to see them through.

"What was seen as unconventional 30 years ago is common practice today," Bondy said of healthy eating as a specific practice. "It wasn’t mainstream like it is now, and it’s because of unsung heroes like Annabelle, who really put it out there."

Born Jan. 5, 1960, in North Ryde, Australia, Clayton grew up surfing the beaches of her home country. She worked as an advertising executive for RCA Records in Sydney, Australia, in the early 1980s, but didn’t enjoy the day-to-day culture of the corporate world. After getting her massage license at the Sydney College of Natural Therapy, she set forth on the course that would take her to so many places.

"She was a fantastic massage therapist," said friend Robin Ziegelbaum of Port Washington. "She could give you a massage for three hours and not be tired. She would give all of her energy. She was boundless in her giving ability."

Clayton was also an artist, a writer, and a talented gardener. She once transformed classrooms, hallways, and the library of Port Washington’s Manorhaven Elementary School into a mock Australian desert to celebrate multicultural week. She used these lessons to highlight indigenous culture, exposing students to traditional aboriginal dance and art.

Clayton was also known for her sculptures and centerpieces, which she would make for bar and bat mitzvahs and weddings around the community.

"Annabelle wrote and lived with passion," Ziegelbaum said. " . . . Every time Annabelle had the opportunity to do good she plunged in head first."

In addition to her daughter, Clayton is survived by her husband, Mario Mouarbes of Port Washington; son-in-law, Pablo Gonzalez Perez of Port Washington; and sisters, Carol Flynn and Heather Sandercock, both of Australia.