Jan Weingrad Smith

JAN WEINGRAD SMITH

Jan Weingrad Smith, beloved mother, daughter, sister, aunt and loyal friend, passed away at Norwalk Hospital Saturday night, May 22.

Born in Stamford, CT on January 23, 1950, she is the daughter of Stamford’s Murray Weingrad and Louise Reback Weingrad (deceased) and Genevieve Weingrad (deceased). She graduated from Rippowam High School, and began a noted career as a nurse, midwife, and maternal and child health educator. She has been a resident of Norwalk, CT for many years.

She earned a diploma in nursing with honors from the Washington Hospital Center School of Nursing in 1971, earned a BSN Magna Cum Laude from Bridgeport University in 1981, her MSN in maternal and child health and nurse midwifery from Columbia University School of Nursing in 1984, a Masters in public health from the Columbia University Division of Population and Family Health, Maternal and Child Health in 1985, a Ph.D. in nursing from the UConn School of Nursing in 2013, and a certificate in curriculum evaluation and design from UConn in 2015.

She accomplished all of this while working full time and raising her daughter, Michelle.

Since 2015 she has been a member of the academic and regional clinical faculty of Frontier Nursing University, educating graduate level nurses studying to be midwives.

From 2014-2015 she was an assistant professor of nursing at Southern Connecticut School of Nursing. From 2006-2014 she was a clinical assistant professor in the Yale University School of Nursing, and from 1992-1999 she was assistant clinical professor at the Columbia University Graduate School of Nursing. In 1998 she was a visiting instructor at the Vordesgskolan School of Nursing at the University of Goteborg, Sweden. From 1999 to 2004 she was an assistant professor at Boston University School of Public Health in the Department of Maternal and Child Health, nurse midwifery education program. In the late ‘80s-early ‘90s she also served as instructor/midwife for New York Medical College and Metropolitan Hospital in New York City, delivered babies at The Childbearing Center of Morris Heights, in the Bronx; as adjunct faculty for maternal newborn nursing at Fairfield University in Fairfield, CT, and was a lecturer for the American Health Care Institute. She has also worked as a staff midwife at Planned Parenthood of Southern New England, Norwalk Community Health Center, and Community Health Center in Meriden, CT where she was director of the prenatal center. Early in her career, she was head nurse, labor and delivery at Norwalk Hospital.

Jan was an ardent and vocal advocate for women’s and children’s health with special interest in promoting and supporting breastfeeding education and policy development in the US and internationally, and improving access to midwifery services in the US. She served in many capacities in the American Public Health Association, including chairperson of the maternal and child health section.

In her spare time, she sang in the choir at Temple Beth El, Stamford, CT, acted in community theater, attended as many Broadway musicals as she could, especially to celebrate her birthday, was a member of book clubs and weekly scrabble games, and loved to cook for family and friends.

Most notably, she will be remembered for her caring bedside manner, her love of everything purple and lavender, and always being there for family and friends to help them navigate the health care and hospital systems.

She is predeceased by her mother, Louise; her step-mother, Genevieve Weingrad; her step-siblings Linda Weintraub Stark, Nancy Weintraub Leferman, and Lewis Weintraub.

She is survived by her daughter Michelle Perry and son-in-law Malik Perry of Dallas, TX and their fur babies; her father Murray Weingrad (Stamford), her sister Deborah Weingrad and Christopher Campbell, her brother (in law) both of South Norwalk; and nieces and nephews Rachel Campbell and Matthew Campbell (South Norwalk), David Stark (Patty) of Pound Ridge, NY; Rebecca Stark Schwartz, Fort Lauderdale, FL; Lori Baden (Alan Rothenstreich) Randi Price (Craig), Marc Leferman (Susan), all of Stamford.

Funeral services Tuesday May 25 at Temple Sinai will be live streamed followed by internment at Fairfield Memorial Park. The family will announce shiva arrangements shortly. Donations in her memory can be made to Temple Sinai, Lakeside Drive, Stamford, CT or to Planned Parenthood of CT.