Obituary: Barbara S. Kreissman

Barbara S. Kreissman was born Aug. 2, 1937, in the Bronx, N.Y., and passed away peacefully after a long illness on Jan. 30.

Barbara graduated from CCNY in 1959 with a bachelor’s in business administration and married her husband, Marvin, on Dec. 20, 1959.

She began her career as a teacher at P.S. 69 in the Bronx in the early 1960s. She left teaching after giving birth to her two sons, Adam in March 1966 and Jonathan in May 1968.

Barbara moved with her family to East Brunswick, N.J., in 1969 and became a homemaker to raise her young sons. After a few years, Barbara and a friend started a small business, “Plant Peddlers,” selling plants to individual customers and businesses. The family moved to Atlanta in 1977 and she started working administrative positions at several offices. Barbara found her home in the mid-1980s, when she landed at the AJCC Downtown as the executive administrative assistant to the executive director and was a prominent fixture at the MJCC for over 15 years.

Barbara made friends wherever she went. From college friends, to whom she remained close, to new friends made later in life, to everyone in between, Barbara loved them and they loved her. Barbara was the mother of two sons, two dogs and six cats, who in her eyes never had enough food on their plates or in their bowls.

She loved to cook during Passover and Thanksgiving, preparing too many dishes, so there would always be leftovers to feed a small army. Barbara loved concerts and plays and was a frustrated actress early in life and never got the chance to shine on Broadway. Friends and family remember Barbara as a smart, highly intelligent person with a strong point of view, who liked to email and forward funny and sometimes dirty jokes.

Barbara was preceded in death by her parents, Abraham and Florence Schwartz, and her son, Jonathan. She is survived by her husband, Marvin, and her son, Adam. In lieu of flowers, the family suggests making contributions to your favorite charity of choice.