Judy Belinfante

If anyone lived a full and productive life it was Judy Belinfante. She met her husband of 54 years Geoff in the theatre at Brandeis University and she continued to pursue her love of theatre as the assistant producer at Playhouse on the Mall in Paramus until she decided that it was more important to become a full-time mom to her two beautiful daughters, Carrie and Lacey. That didn't stop her drive to stay busy and contribute to her community. She took a failing Girl Scout program in her home town of River Vale and built it into a thriving organization by offering innovative programs and exciting field trips. She made girl scouting cool again. She always enjoyed crafting and when it was time for the girls to go to summer camp, she became the "arts and crafts lady" at Camp Nah-Jee-Wah where she continued to teach arts and crafts for 14 years, long after her daughters had moved on. In fact, the arts and crafts building at the camp is called Judy's Den in her honor. Now, her daughter Carrie is the director of the camp.

When the kids got older, she took a job as the adult program coordinator at the JCC on the Palisades, designing interesting and informative programs for adult members for many years, and she continued to supervise the arts and crafts program at their day camp for many years.

Never one to just sit and relax she was always involved in community service. She served as the treasurer of the home owners association of Cove Point, the community where she and her family owned a summer home. She continued to serve her neighbors as Beach Chairman and Social Committee member for Kitchell Lake Association in West Milford, New Jersey where she moved when she and her husband retired. As you might expect, retirement didn't really suit her and when her long-time friend Arline Schwechter, the owner of Longevity Surgical, a surgical supply store in Englewood needed a bookkeeper, she took on a new responsibility with the same vigor that she demonstrated all her life. She and Arline have kept the business going despite challenges from on line stores until the day she passed.

Even though she was always busy with one thing or another, she maintained her love of the Theatre by attending many Broadway shows over the years. She loved to cruise and with Geoff, they took many voyages to visit ports around the world. In addition, she always loved to cook and entertain by hosting parties for the various home owners' associations she served and her many friends whom she would always have over for a "bit" that somehow always turned into a feast. There is some irony in the fact that she passed away the day before Thanksgiving, a holiday she hosted for many years.

Judy leaves behind her husband Geoff, two daughters, Carrie and Lacey and their husbands Stuart Youngs and Seth Forman, five grandchildren, Spencer, Addie, and Cameron Youngs and Levi and Reid Forman. She also leaves three sisters, Susan and her husband Stuart Brenner, Alice Hackman and her partner Bruce Beck and Ellen Goldberg.

In lieu of flowers, donations can be made in her honor to The Breast Cancer Research Foundation or the Parkinson's Association.