Maxine (Pett) Newman

Maxine Newman of Tamarac, Florida, passed away on November 23 at the age of 96 after a series of brief illnesses. An unbounded source of love for her family and great friend to many, she will be deeply missed.

Maxine was born in New York City in the midst of the depression, the younger daughter of Samuel and Cecelia Pett. She married the love of her life, Sanford Newman, in 1948, who predeceased her in 2006. Maxine and Sandy had two children, Madelyn, who passed away in 2010, and Douglas, and is also survived by her two grandchildren, Jeff and Andrew Newman. She was always close to her sister, Mildred Kollander, deceased, and her niece, Susan Zitelli.

Growing up in New York City, Maxine was comfortable with urban life. When Sandy was transferred to Poughkeepsie, she found a whole new world, even learning to drive, but the culture shock was too great, and after 18 months Sandy was able to obtain a transfer to lead a mid-town branch office in Manhattan and the family settled in northern New Jersey, minutes from Manhattan, where they raised their children. When Sandy retired, they moved to Boca Raton and then to Tamarac, Florida, where they found an active community and developed many friendships.

Maxine was best defined by her intelligence, her abundant love for her family and the many deep friendships she developed. Saturday nights meant a trip to pick up the Sunday New York Times, so that Maxine, a high school graduate, could complete the Times Sunday crossword puzzle (in ink!) before going to bed, a love of language and education that she passed along to her children. She appeared on an episode of “Wheel of Fortune” and won the grand prize.

Extremely proud of her children and grandchildren, they could do no wrong in her eyes and all felt her unquestioned affection. Maxine took great joy in the business success of her son, Doug, and had great affection for her daughter-in-law Suzi. She would kvell about Jeff being a Deputy District Attorney in California and a highlight of her month was the haiku that Andrew would create and send to her. The pandemic brought weekly Zoom calls with the family.

Maxine’s many long friendships are a tribute to the affection and loyalty that she felt for them and was so evidently reciprocated. As time took its inevitable toll, the assistance from so many friends was a tribute to her friendships and was deeply appreciated.