Carolyn G. OSMAN

VIRGINIA BEACH - Carolyn Goldman Osman, of 3167 Silver Sands Circle, Virginia Beach and formerly of Hampton, a woman cherished and loved by so many, was tragically taken from us on the morning of Dec. 7, 2009.
The daughter of the late Beatrice and Harry Goldman, Mrs. Osman began accumulating devoted friends during her childhood in Portsmouth and summers on the Virginia Beach oceanfront.
Carolyn embodied selflessness. Her love and tireless efforts to help others, whether by uttering sincere and comforting words or by her generosity of spirit, time or money endeared her to entire swaths of Hampton Roads. Family was, however, the center of her existence.
Carolyn is predeceased by her husband of 47 years and love of her life, Dr. Charles Osman, and survived by her sons, Michael and Bradley Osman of Virginia Beach and Louis Osman, his wife, Sheila Steinbach and their children, Yael and Hannah, of Teaneck, N.J.; brother and sister-in-law, Dr. Charles and Dottie Goldman of Virginia Beach; and many nieces and nephews. Three children who held a special place in Carolyn's heart were her great-nephew, Harrison Wingett, and "her twins," Michael and Luke Moravek.
The breadth and depth of Mrs. Osman's involvement in her community over the years are truly an inspiration. Diagnosed with Malignant Melanoma in 1973, Carolyn turned a potential tragedy into a strength. After recovery she not only became a registered nurse, practicing her skills at Riverside Hospital in Hampton for two decades, but she also applied for and was chosen as Virginia's Miss Hope, the American Cancer Society's official representative who symbolizes hope in the fight against cancer. In Virginia Beach Carolyn devoted her energies and her passion to Temple Emanuel, where she helped to oversee so many ritual and administrative duties, and to the Chevra Kadisha, who perform the Taharah Ritual, which purifies and shrouds deceased Jewish persons for burial. In addition Mrs. Osman, supported a wide variety of civil rights, environmental and Jewish charitable organizations and touched everyone with whom she came in contact personally with her giving spirit. Her loss will have reverberations throughout the community for years to come, though with luck and effort by all her inimitable spirit will live on. For in these troubled times Carolyn's unconditional loving and support should serve as a model for the way we treat each other.
The funeral service will take place at Temple Emanuel, 424 25th Street, Virginia Beach at 11 a.m. Thursday, Dec. 10, followed by a graveside ceremony at Forest Lawn Cemetery, Norfolk, Va. Minyan will be held at Temple Emanuel Thursday at 6 p.m. The family will be sitting Shiva at the home of Charles and Dottie Goldman. Minyans will be Friday, 8 a.m., Saturday, 6:30 p.m. and Sunday 9:30 a.m.
Contributions in Mrs. Osman's memory may be sent to the Harry L. and Beatrice Moss Goldman Philanthropic Fund, c/o The Tidewater Jewish Foundation, 5000 Corporate Woods Drive, Suite 200, Virginia Beach, VA 23462, or Temple Emanuel. Online condolences may be made to the family at hdoliver.com. View and post condolences on our online guestbook at dailypress.com/guestbooks.