Lillian Ostrin

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Lillian Ostrin

Lillian Ostrin

Lillian Ostrin, a long-time Livingston resident, died peacefully at home on July 24. She was 94. Lillian was born Lillian Shulman in New York City in 1925, the daughter of immigrants. Her family moved to New Jersey when she was a toddler and she grew up in Irvington and Newark, graduating from Weequahic High School. She put herself through Rutgers University night school, intending to be a teacher upon graduation. However, she discovered it wasn’t a profession she enjoyed. She returned to school to earn a graduate degree and become a school psychologist, studying part-time when her children were young. Lillian met Solomon Ostrin at her Rutgers graduation and married him in 1949. In 1969, they moved to Livingston, where her husband taught at Livingston High School. Unusual for a woman of her time, Lillian was a professional: a school psychologist for Harding School in Kenilworth. As a young married woman, she was president of her local chapter of the League of Women Voters, because she believed strongly in equal rights for all. She was also a devoted supporter of Israel. After Sol’s death in 2013, Lillian reshaped her life, becoming a devotee of the Livingston Senior Center, where she made many new friends. She considered this hub of activity a “godsend.” Lillian was an eager traveller, and she and Sol travelled the world whenever they could. They were frequent visitors to Israel, where her younger daughter and her family had settled, as well as to Canada, where their older daughter lived. A voracious reader, a lively, spirited woman and a smiling face: that was Lillian, and her death leaves a void in the hearts of those who loved her. She was predeceased by her parents, Louis and Fanny (Selsky) Shulman; her older sister, Henrietta Sinoway; her brother and fellow Livingston resident, William Shulman; and her husband, Solomon. She is survived by her two daughters, Elaine (Ostrin) Smith of Toronto and Lynn (Ostrin) Sharon of Rehovot, Israel, as well as her son-in-law, Uri Sharon; her grandchildren, Natalie and William Sharon; and a niece, a nephew, and their offspring. Donations in her memory may be made to the Jewish National Fund (jnf.org) or to the VNA-St. Barnabas Hospice (www.vnahg.org). ...

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