FLORENCE GROSSBERG

GROSSBERG FLORENCE GREENBAUM GROSSBERG Passed away peacefully of natural causes at age 97 on September 3, 2020 with family at her side in Middleton, WI. She was born in The Bronx, New York City and always retained a sunny disposition in spite of a stormy childhood during The Depression. She always had the unique ability to make people feel valued just with her warm smile and endearing personal questions. She graduated Hunter College with a BA-1944 and found her true calling in nursing. She joined the US Cadet Nurse Corps in 1944, received a BS-Science in Nursing from New York University Bellevue School of Nursing in 1946, RN in 1947, awarded Honorable Mention for Excellence in Nursing and then a MSN-Nursing Education while working at night school in the 1950s from Columbia University Teachers College. She strongly believed in higher education for women at a time when most were encouraged to pass on pursuing any degree beyond high school. After a successful career in hospital and clinic nursing, she became certified to teach health and nursing at Walton High School in The Bronx and taught for 20 years. Her skills in teaching were lauded, but more appreciated was her talent for mentoring these young women to participate, and work diligently towards health careers, especially nursing. She started lessons by writing in large letters on the board-SMILE-- and she motivated students by listening to their challenges, helping with solutions, and telling them "You can do it!" One of her former students said: "Mrs. Grossberg is the best teacher I ever had and that includes everything through Law School!" Some relatives have called her a "force of nature" or noted "her smile is like sunshine" and her positive attitude was infectious. She met her future husband Jules at a Hunter college dance when she was 17 and he enlisted in the Army in 1942 and served in The Phillipines during WW II and after the war ended, they married in 1946. During their years in New York City lived in the same apartment building for 40 years, raised two sons, and retired to sunny Delray Beach, Florida in 1986. Due to increasing health problems, they moved to Rockville, MD and lived independently in The Ring House in 2008 close to their son David and his wife Karen, and then to Madison, WI in 2014 near their son Paul and his husband Dean. She enjoyed playing bridge, scrabble and knitting and wanted all those around her to learn and would willingly teach them a stitch or two. She strived to make the world a better place and she strongly believed in women's rights, race relations and the civic duty and the obligation of all Americans to participate in their right to vote and be heard. She will be so sorely missed but her smile and positive attitude to help all others is a worthy role model to emulate. Florence is survived by two sons, Dr. Paul (Dr Dean Ziemke) Grossberg, Madison, WI and Dr. David (Karen) Grossberg, Potomac, MD; sisters-in-law Clara Elkoff, and Hilde Month; brother-in-law Dr Jim Macdonald; grandchildren, Sean (Jaime Bell) Grossberg, Dr Sam (Dr Bibi Khalsa) Grossberg, Hannah Grossberg, and Jacob Ziemke; and many loving relatives. Preceded in death by her husband, Jules; parents, Samuel and Bertha Greenbaum; stepmother Sally Greenbaum; sisters Muriel Kurtzman and Dr Judy Macdonald. Florence was interred after a small funeral service at Eternal Light Cemetery in Boynton Beach, Florida on September 8, 2020 and Shivah service and observation was held privately. Memorial Contributions may be made to: Florence Grossberg Scholarship Fund, University of Wisconsin Foundation, School of Nursing Annual Fund in memory of Florence Grossberg https://secure.supportuw.org/give/; Hunter College-Bellevue School of Nursing Fund https://hunter.cuny.edu/give/; Scholarship and Welfare Fund of the Alumni Association of Hunter College https://scholarshipandwelfarefundhuntercollege.org; New York City Fund for Public Schools www.fundforpublicschools.org/donate; Jewish Social Services, Madison WI https://www.jewishmadison.org/tribute; or the charity of your choice. Online remembrances and condolences may be made at www.cressfuneralservice.com www.cressfuneralservice.com