Biography
Helen May Strauss, PhD, 94, a clinical psychologist and psychoanalyst, passed away peacefully at her home in Monroe, New York on January 10th, 2010, surrounded by her family. She was the daughter of the late Eugenie Morgenstern May and the late Otto B. May.
Helen was born in Newark, N.J. on July 6th, 1915. She traveled extensively throughout the world from a young age, and dedicated her life to helping others. She graduated from Barnard College in 1936 and was one of the first women to join the U.S. Navy WAVES during World War II. She met her husband Frederick (Fritz), a radiologist, after he moved to the United States to escape Nazi Germany. They were married in 1944 and settled first in Newark, and then in South Orange, N.J., moving into the home in which she had grown up to raise their family. They made every effort to help refugees and provide medical equipment to clinics in need in East Germany.
She earned a Ph.D in psychology from Columbia University in New York in 1966 and a postdoctoral degree from the NYU Postdoctoral Program in Psychotherapy and Psychoanalysis in 1979. She worked with many non-profit agencies, including the North Jersey Training School in Totowa; Fuld Neighborhood House in Newark, where she met and worked with her great friend, Anne Fried; Essex County Youth House, YWCA of the Oranges; North Essex Child Guidance Clinic; and Youth Consultation Service. She presented at numerous APA and other professional conferences and published in several academic journals and books. Her experience as the first WAVES selection and classification officer was featured in Tom Brokaw's book The Greatest Generation. She was named N.J. Psychologist of the Year in 1997, was an active member of the N.J. Psychological Association, and was a founding faculty member of the Institute of Psychoanalysis and Psychotherapy of New Jersey. In addition to her private practice, she supervised students in the Rutgers University Graduate School of Applied and Professional Psychology, as well as at Seton Hall University, and arranged for their internships mentoring at- risk children. She surveyed her fellow WAVES alumni to gauge the impact of their service in the Navy on the choices they made following their tour of duty (http://thewaveswewere.com/survey.htm). She enjoyed sharing her professional skills with the staff of Playhouse Nursery School, in West Orange, and cherished her lifelong friendship with Playhouse Director Jeanne Ginsburg.
Helen's friendships spanned the globe, and she brightened the lives of countless individuals, professionally and personally. She loved the opera, books, photography, traveling, and spending time with her family and friends. She was cherished by her family including cousins and relatives in the United States, Israel, Scotland, England, and France and was a wonderful role model for all children she encountered, embraced, and counseled. A long-time resident of West Orange, she spent her final year at her home in Monroe, cared for by her family.
Her husband Fritz died in 1973; her brother Ernest May died in 2002. She was adored by her five children, their spouses, and eleven grandchildren, all of whom survive her: Robert Strauss and Christine Ingersoll of Seattle (Daniel and Evan), Arthur and Elizabeth Strauss of Windham, New Hampshire (Kaitlin, Sarah, Jacob, and Laura), Carol Strauss-Sotiropoulos and Theodore Sotiropoulos of Marquette, Michigan and Grafton, Massachusetts (Demetrios, Michael, Peter), Walter Strauss of Montclair, New Jersey (Rachel and Steven), daughter-in law Betty Feinberg Strauss, and Donald Strauss and Becky Hartesveldt of Monroe. Her two great-grandchildren, Ayin and Theo Sotiropoulos also gave her much joy in her later life.
A Memorial Service will be held January 23rd, 2010 at 2:00 pm at the Unitarian-Universalist Congregation in Montclair, NJ. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to The Children’s Defense Fund or to Youth Consultation Service (YCS Foundation) in Hackensack, N.J. Burial Services will be private.
