Jeff Madoff

1928 - 2020

Dr. Jeff Madoff, whose life centered around helping others, died Friday, April 10, in Stamford, CT. He was 91 years old. The cause was COVID-19. Born in the Bronx in 1928, Jeff grew up in a neighborhood where everyone watched out for one another. His father, Alex, owned a paint store and his mother, Masha, worked at the store and took care of everything at home. His boyhood consisted of school, street games like stickball and johnny-on-the-pony, trips to the nearby library, 5-cent egg creams, and giant pastrami sandwiches. When he graduated high school, he enrolled in City College where he met the beautiful, elegant, and shy Sonya Rubenstein. After a romantic courtship, they married at the top of the Barbizon Hotel in Manhattan, and started a life together which would last 67 years. After graduating from his Alma Mater, he and his bride traveled to Case Western University in Cleveland where he earned his PhD in Psychology. Just before graduation, he was drafted into the army and was stationed in Georgia where he was an army psychologist. After his service, they came north again, this time buying a cozy home in Middletown, CT, where their only child, Alec, was born in 1961. He was the light of their lives. Jeff was hired as a staff psychologist at Connecticut Valley Hospital and later, as one of the first school psychologists in Connecticut. He and Sonya, who was a popular teacher, were soon able to buy their dream home. Though still modest, the back porch had a beautiful view of a magnolia tree and the kitchen was quintessentially adorable. They enjoyed travelling as well, spending summers in Maine, and driving around to country auctions and flea markets. Jeff was multi-talented, reading constantly, enjoying countless hours in his basement woodworking shop, and winning many racquetball tournaments at the YMCA. He was the ultimate handyman and could fix anything. He had a beautiful singing voice that was almost exclusively reserved for his family members, especially Sonya. When he retired, he and Sonya became even more active in the local community. Always together, they joined the board of the Lincoln Home, where Sonya's mother was a resident. They attended myriad concerts, lectures, and presentations at Wesleyan, the Goodspeed Opera House, the Longwharf Theatre, and the Bushnell, and volunteered at the local library and hospital. They joined a dance class and learned to waltz, foxtrot, samba and more. Even in his retirement, he counselled friends and acquaintances who needed his expert advice, mentoring young people and volunteering to do taxes for the elderly. Together, he and Sonya funded a scholarship for talented, needy students at Middlesex Community College. His lifelong credo was to give back by volunteering, supporting and contributing to people and organizations he believed in. He was a wonderful role model. His family is so thankful to have had him in their lives. He leaves behind his beloved wife Sonya, his son Alec and daughter-in-law Jeannine, and his adored granddaughter, Isabelle. He will be greatly missed.