Daniel Gottlieb

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Daniel Gottlieb
23 Nov 1926 - 16 May 2009

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• partner of club member John Fitzpatrick

Obituary

Water Mill resident Daniel Gottlieb died on May 16 at his home in Lighthouse Point, Florida, due to complications of chronic lymphocytic leukemia. A Rutgers professor, social activist and therapist, he was 82.

Born November 23, 1926, in The Bronx, he was a graduate of City College of New York and earned a master’s in social work from Case Western Reserve in Cleveland, Ohio. There he met and soon married Alicia Farrell of Providence, Rhode Island. The couple settled in Lawrenceville, New Jersey, and raised two children, Maura Elizabeth (Betsy) Gottlieb and Christopher Gottlieb. From 1961 to 1967 he worked as a counselor at the Family Guidance Center of Princeton. He then became a professor at the School of Social Work at Rutgers University in New Brunswick. After the death of his wife, he moved to West Greenwich Village where he began a committed relationship with John Fitzpatrick, which continued to his death. Upon retirement from Rutgers in 1987, his love of teaching continued, and he served as an adjunct professor of social work at New York University, Fordham, and Hunter College.

Known as a gentle and compassionate man, survivors said he was always active and engaged. He had an enduring love of the arts and became a docent at age 81 for the Parrish Art Museum in Southampton, where he gave tours to seniors. He also had a lifelong commitment to progressive causes and was an activist for the civil rights, peace and gay rights movements. In the early 1980s he was involved at the start of the Gay Men’s Health Crisis, a volunteer-supported and community-based organization committed to national leadership in the fight against AIDS in NYC. For the past five years he was a screener with Tuesday’s Angels, a charity that gives emergency financial assistance to those with HIV/AIDS.

He is survived by a son, Christopher Gottlieb and his wife Lorraine; a brother, Kenneth Gottlieb of Hawaii; two grandsons, John and Daniel Ryan, both of Texas; and his partner of 30 years, John Fitzpatrick of New York City, Water Mill, and Florida. A memorial service will be held on June 20 in Water Mill. Contact dangottliebmemorial@gmail.com for further details.

In lieu of flowers, donations to Tuesday’s Angels, 2545 East Sunrise Boulevard, PMD 139, Fort Lauderdale, FL 33304 would be appreciated by the family.

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