POMPTON PLAINS, N.J. – Dorothy Mae Zimmerman passed away peacefully sur- rounded by her loving children, Betsy, Josh, and Susan, on September 16, just two weeks shy of her 89th birthday.
Prior to her retirement, Dorothy was the administrator of private psychiatric hospitals in Norfolk, Virginia. Prior to that, Dorothy was the administrator of the Department of Family and Community Medicine at UMass Medical School. Dorothy started her career with Planned Parenthood of Massachusetts, where she ultimately served as director.
Dorothy attended Skidmore College, the University of Pennsylvania, and earned a master’s degree from Clark University in 1981.
Dorothy was born in Hartford, Connecticut to Fannie and Myron Zimmerman, and spent her childhood in Springfield, Massachusetts with her loving sister, Carol Brown. Dorothy married
and raised her children in Worcester, Massachusetts before moving to Norfolk, Virginia, where she lived for 35 years.
In 2018, Dorothy moved to the Cedar Crest continuing care community in New Jersey. As she did everywhere else Dorothy lived, Dorothy quickly built a network of life-long friends and involved herself in the community, including serving on the Resident Advisory Council and the Jewish Council.
Dorothy was always an activist in social and Jewish communal causes. She served as president of the Worcester chapter of the National Council of Jewish Women and was active in the work of founding the Central Massachusetts Family Planning Council, of which she was the first chairperson.
Dorothy had a gift for making friends wherever she went and seeing the value in everyone. She was widely admired for her kindness, warmth, philanthropy, and patronage of the arts. Dorothy was a leader and inspiration to her children, grandchildren, and the many friends and acquaintances whose lives she touched.
Dorothy is survived by her sister, Carol Brown, her three beloved children – Betsy Rich (Jamie), Josh Horowitz (Patti Baggett), and Susan Horowitz (Irina Grobman), and three grandchildren, Lindsey Thayer (Jon), Alex Rich, and Hannah Starr. Dorothy’s children were the light of her life, and it was their privilege to be with her and comfort and care for her during her final illness and when she passed.
A funeral service celebrating Dorothy’s life was held at the Robert Schoem’s Menorah Chapel in Paramus, N.J.
Donations in honor of Dorothy may be made to the National Council of Jewish Women and the Jewish National Fund – USA.