NORFOLK —Shirley Sylvia Newman, 90, of Livingston Manor, New York, passed away on August 18, 2018 in Norfolk, after a long and hard battle with cancer. She was fearless and brave until the end with her family by her side.
Shirley Newman was born in New York City to Helen Silver Fisher and Eugene Fisher on September 14, 1927.
She went to high school at Julia Richmond High for girls and graduated in 1945. She worked as a waitress for 25 years at the Triangle Restaurant, learning all she could from Hymie and Hilda Heller. It was never beneath her to carry a tray, serve others, or teach the art of fine dining and service. She was devoted to raising her four daughters and being a wife. In 1979, her dream of opening her own restaurant came true, The Oak Table Restaurant in Livingston Manor. Shirley was ahead of her time, owning and operating a business when women were supposed to stay at home. She absolutely loved Opera, gambling, dining out, shopping, and traveling with her best friend Iris Jacobs-Cornell. The absolute pride and joy of her life, were her four daughters. She raised them to be independent and successful professional women. She took great pride in raising funds for the Livingston Manor Ambulance Corp, as a member of the Livingston Manor Ladies Auxiliary of the Volunteer Fire Department, a member of the Livingston Manor Chamber of Commerce.
Shirley is survived by her daughters: Helen Mia Newman-Koerner (Joseph) of Livingston Manor; Dr. Rosanne Newman (Francois Holder) of Norfolk; Sandi Newman (Dan O’Shea) of Pompano Beach, Florida; and Andrea Newman-Fisher (Allan Fisher) of Long Branch, New Jersey. She has five grandchildren: Benjamin Koerner of Norfolk, Sara Koerner-Dugan ( Justin Dugan) of Acworth Georgia, Simone Holder-Cassidy (Chris Cassidy) of Scottsdale, Arizona, Jordan Holder of Boone, North Carolina, and Louis Fisher of Venice Beach, California. She has two great grandchildren and her favorite cousins Jerry and Jami Politzer. She also has many nieces and nephews. She is preceded in death by her husband Robby Newman, parents Helen Silver-Fisher and Eugene Fisher, and her brother David Fisher.
Memorial donations may be made to American Cancer Society: www. cancer.org/involved/donate/memorial-giving.html or to American Macular Degeneration Foundation: https://www.macular.org/what-macular-degeneration. The family wishes to extend their gratitude to Province House of De Paul, Norfolk, Virginia & Freda H Gordon Hospice and Palliative Care of Tidewater. Funeral service was held at Agudas Achim Synagogue in Livingston Manor with Rabbi Fred Pomerantz officiating. Burial followed at Agudas Achim Cemetery.