Gail Fishman Gerwin

Gail Fishman Gerwin

Morristown

Gail Fishman Gerwin, longtime resident of Morristown, died on Monday, October 3rd, after months of treatment for non-Hodgkin's lymphoma.

Gail is survived by her beloved husband of 48 years, Dr. Kenneth S. Gerwin, as well as her daughter, Karen Gerwin, son-in-law, Michael Stoopack, and grandchildren Ben and Liv Stoopack; and her daughter Kate Goldberg, son-in-law Dean Goldberg, and grandsons, Jordan and Brandon Goldberg; and her sister, Carol Miller. A Paterson, NJ native, graduate of Eastside High, Gail received her bachelor's degree from Goucher College in 1961, where she was Phi Beta Kappa. Post-college, she was an elementary school teacher in Ridgewood, NJ, before moving on to work in the PR department at NYU Medical Center. After raising children, she worked in the PR department at Sea Land, before starting her own freelance writing/editing firm, inedit. In 1996, she earned her master's degree in Creative Writing from NYU, where she studied with Ann Hood. She discovered her deepest passion, writing poetry. Her collection Sugar and Sand was a 2010 Paterson Poetry Prize finalist; her second collection, Dear Kinfolk, earned a 2013 Paterson Award for Literary Excellence. Her most recent collection, Crowns, was published earlier this year. Her poetry, book reviews, short fiction, essays and drama appear in print and online literary journals, as well as on stage. She was associate poetry editor of Tiferet. She loved teaching workshops, giving readings and sharing her love of poetry with audiences of all ages. She enjoyed travel and Broadway shows, but her greatest joy came from spending time with her children and grandchildren.

A funeral service took place on Wednesday, October 5th, at Menorah Chapels, 2950 Vauxhall Road, Vauxhall (Union), NJ 07088. Shiva will be observed at the home of Kate and Dean Goldberg, 137 Canoe Brook Parkway, Summit, NJ on Wednesday from 3-9PM (minyan at 7), Thursday from 5-9 (minyan at 7), Friday 2-5. Shiva will also take place on Sunday, October 9th from 3PM - 7PM (minyan at 5PM) at the home of Karen Gerwin and Michael Stoopack, 295 St. John's Place, #1E.