Neal Goldenberg

Goldenberg is survived by his wife, Myrna, children Liz, David (Tom) & Eve, and grandchildren Olivia and Louise. Also a prostate cancer survivor, he was predeceased by his brother Abbey and parents Isadore and Jennie.

The Brooklyn native, who played PAL baseball for the notorious 75th Police Precinct and against legend Sandy Koufax, graduated with a degree in chemistry from CCNY. He turned down several minor league baseball contracts to pursue his education, which he followed with a Masters and PhD in chemistry at the University of Arkansas. Goldenberg married his high school sweetheart in 1957 at Twin Cantors in Brooklyn before the couple headed to Arkansas. They were married for 68 ½ years.

Goldenberg retired in 2002 from the US Department of Energy, rising to Associate Assistant Undersecretary during his 33-year career with the US Government. During his tenure, Goldenberg worked on powering the Voyager & Pioneer Spacecraft, which are out of our solar system & still exploring, the lunar rover for Apollo, safety for nuclear submarines with Admiral Rickover’s team, the Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board and ran the DoE’s Office of Environment, Safety and Health, among other roles.

One of his proudest achievements while at the DoE was developing a power source for the artificial heart.

In 1992, he received the DoE’s Meritorious Service Award for his work in developing the “Departmental nuclear safety policy and upgraded nuclear safety standards for reactor and nonreactor nuclear facilities” from Admiral James D. Watkins, the Secretary of Energy.

In 1994, President Bill Clinton conferred upon him the rank of Meritorious Executive in the Senior Executive Service” for his distinguished career and “superior accomplishment in management of programs” for “quality and efficiency in the public service.”

In January 2002, Energy Secretary Spencer Abraham presented him with the Distinguished Career Service Award.

After eschewing a career as a shortstop to continue his studies, Goldenberg took his first professional job at Monsanto’s Mound Laboratories in Dayton, Ohio, where he and Myrna welcomed their three children. It was during that time he put his growing family first and turned down the opportunity to train to be an Apollo astronaut.

His involvement in the US space program was well known enough to NASA management that when his daughter Eve dropped his name in a letter asking for tickets to take her daughters to the last shuttle launch, they replied gladly and provided the group, which included Goldenberg, the VIP treatment.

Goldenberg spent a year teaching chemistry at Fairleigh Dickinson University in Teaneck, New Jersey, before moving in 1969 to Potomac, Maryland, and starting his US Government career by joining DoE predecessor Atomic Energy Commission.

A fan of Jewish music and folk music, Goldenberg spent many Sunday mornings during the 1970s listening to the Jewish Music Hour. He fulfilled a lifelong dream when he got to meet Judy Collins and see her perform live at The Birchmere in Alexandria, Virginia, in 2006. Peter, Paul & Mary, Woodie Guthrie and Joan Baez were other folkies heard frequently throughout the Goldenberg home.

He got his love of Judaism and Jewish holidays from his father. Passover was his favorite holiday, and his seders were always open to all and full of singing, discussion and laughter. No topic was off-limits. Those who attended will never forget his tradition of him banging on the table during the Birkat Hamazon, the blessing said after meals.

Goldenberg instilled the travel bug in his children and grandchildren. After he and Myrna honeymooned in Quebec in January 1957, their travels together would take them to places including Israel, Italy, Spain, France, Austria, Russia, Poland, Finland, Norway, Australia, New Zealand, England, Ireland, Hong Kong, China, Jordan, Egypt and more.

He was known to his family for his sense of humor and pranks. Newlyweds never knew whether he had a prank up his sleeve, a tradition he passed on to his children and nephews. To this day, newly married couples in the Goldenberg family check their honeymoon suites for alarm clocks. He kept his Tom Lehrer 78rpm records long after there was nothing that could play a 78rpm record. He was also known for his collection of sweatshirts, never passing up a chance to rep with pride the schools and colleges his children and grandchildren attended.

A lifelong baseball fan, he was devoted to his New York Giants and often talked of being able to see a day game at Yankee Stadium and walking over the bridge to a night game at the Polo Grounds. While he never got Myrna to the Polo Grounds, she managed to get him to a Brooklyn Dodgers game at Ebbets Field.

A heart attack and subsequent quadruple bypass couldn’t stop him from watching the 2000 Subway Series with his family. He also went to see the Baltimore Orioles during their first season at Camden Yard, the first “throwback stadium” with his wife and oldest daughter, attended Washington Nationals games with his granddaughters and most recently a game in Yankee Stadium in 2023 with his immediate family and cousins from California. He stood up for his native New York during last year’s Dodgers vs Yankees World Series, opposing his first cousins in Los Angeles. His ice hockey-playing granddaughters got him to Washington Capitals games, and he followed rowing swimming and rugby, sports played by his 3 children.

The funeral will be held Monday, September 15, at Adat Shalom in Bethesda, Maryland. Burial will immediately follow at Judean Gardens in Olney, Maryland.

In lieu of flowers, the family asks that you consider a donation to the Prostate Cancer Foundation in his memory or your local food bank.

https://www.pcf.org/donate/