Bettina Ruth Seidman

Lifelong New Yorker Bettina Seidman — daughter of Lillian Perlman and Herschel Seidman — passed away in Poughkeepsie, NY in the early hours of January 3, 2022 at the age of 76. Known to friends and loved ones as a unique and deeply compassionate woman, Bettina shared her intellect and bold personality with all who crossed her path.

Born on a military base in Queens on October 13, 1945 while her father was on active duty in the Philippines, Bettina grew up in Brownsville, Brooklyn with her parents and younger brother, Robert. After attending Samuel J. Tilden High School, she went on to pursue a BA in Psychology at Brooklyn College and received a Labor Relations Certificate from Cornell University’s New York State School of Industrial and Labor Relations in Manhattan. Throughout her teens, Bettina worked as a summer camp counselor at the Worker’s Circle’s Camp Kinder Ring in Hopewell Junction, NY, immersed in progressive Jewish culture and activism, as well as the outdoors.

Inspired by labor rights and clear on her career goals to help people in their professional journeys, Bettina earned an MS in Industrial Psychology at Baruch College and spent over three decades as an executive career management coach helping hundreds, if not thousands, of people navigate difficult transitions in their lives.

Bettina started her career at the William Morris Agency, and then worked in personnel management at the Teleprompter Corporation, UJA-Federation Joint Campaign, and the Community Services Society of New York — a nonprofit organization advocating on behalf of New York's disadvantaged population. Serving as a consultant through her SEIDBET Associates imprint throughout her adult life, Bettina provided outplacement and career counseling to individuals and groups facing corporate layoffs, with clients including The Ayers Group, The New York Times, Altria, and Time Inc. Her career advice has been published in Business

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An avid reader and engaged political pupil, Bettina supported progressive leaders and organizations throughout her life, and worked on the 1992 campaign to elect Paul Tsongas for president. Prior to suffering a debilitating stroke in 2018, she was actively studying Yiddish and celebrating Yiddish culture —continuing her lifelong embrace of her Jewish identity.

Bettina will be remembered as witty and intuitive; a devoted family member and friend; a lover of travel and the arts; and a deeply generous woman with a ceaseless desire for peace and prosperity for all. Donations in her honor can be made to any of the following organizations: the ACLU, City Harvest, Congress for Jewish Culture, and National Network of Abortion Funds. She is now laid to rest at Wellwood Cemetery in West Babylon, NY.