Obituary of Phyllis Friedson

Dover, New Jersey – Phyllis Friedson, 92, passed away on April 16, 2020 the last day of Passover in Dover, NJ. Phyllis was born and raised in Cranston, RI where she worked as a secretary in Rhode Island state government. She later relocated to Chicago, IL where she was an executive secretary at Michael Reese Hospital. After marrying Sidney A. Friedson, she devoted her life to raising her children in Niskayuna and assisting her husband in running Glenville Opticians. Phyllis later went on to operate her own business, Creations, a shop featuring locally made hand-crafted works of art, first in Glenville and later on Upper Union Street in Schenectady. Phyllis was a long-time member of Congregation Agudat Achim. She was a student in the first adult b’not mitzvah class and also was an original member of the Agudat Achim catering group that studied at Schenectady Community College culinary school. Phyllis was a hard-working fundraiser for the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation where she was a dedicated CF gala volunteer for many years. She was also a hardened Boston Red Sox fan who lived to see her team win four world championships in the last part of her life. Her pride and joy were her family including her four grandchildren and three great grandchildren. Phyllis loved to laugh, eat ice cream, indulge her dogs, and wear hats in her convertibles. Phyllis is survived by her son Arthur Friedson (Deborah) of Niskayuna, her daughter Debbie Mandell (Lee) of Rockaway, NJ, her grandchildren, Andrew Friedson (Molly) of Denver, CO, Matthew Friedson (Olivia) of Niskayuna, Mark Mandell of Queens, NY, and Melissa Martin (Scott) of Webster, NY: her great grandchildren, Noah and Zoe Friedson of Denver, CO and Zoey Martin of Webster, NY, and her nephew Warren Zisserson (Marilyn) of Nova Scotia, and her niece Berni Zisserson of Medford, MA. Phyllis was predeceased by her husband Sidney A. Friedson and by her sister Evelyn Zisserson. A private graveside service will be held by the family. Virtual shiva minyanim will be held throughout the week following the funeral. Donations in memory of Phyllis Friedson can be made to the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation of Northeastern New York, 455 Patroon Creek Blvd., Albany, NY 12206, Congregation Agudat Achim, 2117 Union Street, Niskayuna, NY 12309, or the Animal Protective Foundation, 53 Maple Avenue, Schenectady, NY 12302. The funeral service for Phyllis will be live streamed on YouTube. Should you care to view the service please go to the following link https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCqCeaxlvyfajGjtoGDKNp2w just prior to the commencing of the service at 11:00am