Miriam Dinerman, 85, passed away peacefully on Saturday, July 18, 2010, at her home in Pasadena, California. Born April 13, 1925 in New York City, she was the daughter of the late Dr. Abraham J. Goldforb and Dr. Frances Shostac. On a hiking trip through the area in the early 1920s on the Appalachian Trail, Dr. Goldforb purchased land on a whim on East Mountain Road South. Miriam Dinerman grew up here and spent summers in this beautiful spot she loved so much.
Dr. Dinerman received her BA with honors in 1945 from Swarthmore College. Later, she earned both her Masters and Doctorate in Social Work from Columbia University. She spent 31 years at Rutgers University as Professor, Assistant Dean and Associate Dean of the Graduate School of Social Work. She helped found the professional journal, Affilia: Women in Social Work and served as its editor. Upon retiring from Rutgers University, she continued to teach part-time in the Doctoral program at Yeshiva University, Wurzweiler School of Social Work. In addition to editing many academic publications, she was also the author of numerous articles and books.
She married the late Harold Dinerman in 1951 and they were happily married for 25 years. She is survived by her 3 children, David and Andria Dinerman of Lafayette, CA; Ellen Dinerman and Harvey Goldman of Pasadena, CA; and Ruth Dinerman and Peter Jensen of Great Barrington, MA; her 6 grandchildren, Hannah, Sam, Daniel, LaTache, Sam and Tirzah,; and 3 great-grandchilren, Desiree, Brianna, and George.
She has been a mentor to many and is sorely missed by hundreds of students and colleagues on whom she has had great impact. Miriam was short is stature, but as one of her dear friends said, “She was a giant person in a small package.”
A memorial service is planned for Sunday, October 10th at 1:00 pm at Yeshiva University, 2495 Amsterdam Ave., Room 925, New York, New York, 10033.
In lieu of flowers, donations may be made in Dr. Dinerman’s name to www.womenforwomen.org or Southern Poverty Law Center www.splcenter.org.
