Marilyn Snyder

Marilyn Joan Benstock Snyder, aka Maggie Burke, an accomplished actress, published author, and adored mother, daughter, sister and grandmother, left us on April 22, 2026, 10 days shy of her 90th birthday. She leaves behind a world that was considerably brighter and more fun with her in it. She had a remarkable gift for making people from all walks of life feel seen, cared for and loved, whether you knew her for 15 minutes or 50 years.

A graduate of Sarah Lawrence College, Marilyn was the loving daughter of Dr. George and Betty Benstock (both deceased) and adored sister of Linda Benstock Kleet. Deeply bereaving her are her beloved children, Eric Charles Berkeley (Molly Buchholz) and Nancy Berkeley Bynum (Frank K. Bynum, Jr.), both of New York City, and cherished grandchildren, Frank Kitchell Bynum III (“Kit”), Georgia deBondelis Bynum, Leila Parsons Bynum, and Dylan Jean Berkeley. She was the loving stepmother to Dr. Margaret I. Hamilton (Dr. Robin Hamilton) of New York City and Dr. Katherine V. Snyder (R. Timothy Culvahouse) of Berkeley, CA, and grandmother to their children, Rebecca Derwent Hamilton, Emily Sarah Hamilton, Jessie A. Hamilton, Sasha Culvahouse and Theo Culvahouse. She shared 41 years of loving marriage with Dr. Arthur I. Snyder (deceased 2004) and they built a beautiful life together in New York City and Washington, CT.

Under the professional name of Maggie Burke, her career as an actress spanned over five decades with leading roles on and off Broadway and regional theater, as well as in television and film. Some of her favorite Broadway roles were Kate Jerome in “Brighton Beach Memoirs,” Daisy in “Driving Ms. Daisy,” and Kay in the critically-acclaimed “The Language of Trees.” Among her television roles, she played Dr. Audrey Samuels for ten years on “As the World Turns” and Judge Georgina Franklin on “Law and Order.” At Marigold Films, she co-produced and wrote several award-winning films with her co-partner, Ellen Novack.

As a breast cancer survivor and one of the first recipients of reconstructive surgery, she authored “An Informed Decision: Understanding Breast Reconstruction,” for which she won The Guttman Institute Award for Special Courage and Inspiration to Women Everywhere. She later wrote a children’s book for Scholastic Publishing entitled “A Second Chance for Tina,” inspired by her favorite elephant in the Central Park Zoo.

A memorial service will be held at Frank E. Campbell Funeral Chapel on Saturday, May 2 at 10am. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to The Elephant Sanctuary in Tennessee or the United Breast Cancer Foundation.