Florence Victoria Novick

Florence V. (Goldstein Udall) Novick, age 97, of New Bedford, MA, died on Friday, June 3, 2016 after a brief illness. She was wife of the late Fred Udall and the widow of Edward B. Novick. Born in Asbury Park, New Jersey, she was the daughter of the late Joseph Goldstein and Lillian Goldstein Caplan. She graduated from Asbury Park High School. A graduate of Columbia University School of Dental Hygiene, she lived and practiced dental hygiene in New York City. During World War II she was a Red Cross volunteer nurse’s aide at several Manhattan hospitals and was proud to be associated with Sydenham Hospital, one of the first racially-integrated hospitals in the nation. Settling in New Bedford in 1960, she completed her bachelor’s degree in Sociology at Southeastern Massachusetts University and her M.Ed at Bridgewater State College. In 1970 she joined the faculty of the newly-formed Bristol Community College Dental Hygiene program, retiring in 1986. Always devoted to classical music and art, she studied at the Swain School of Design and she and her husband, Edward, were active in the former Friends of Music. She was a member of Tifereth Israel Congregation and its Sisterhood, the New Bedford Jewish Convalescent Home, and numerous other community organizations. She was most involved in the Friends of Buttonwood Park, a group formed in 1987 to preserve the Frederick Law Olmsted concept. Survivors include a son, Abraham Novick and his wife Ling of Baltimore, MD; a daughter, Martha Udall Hammel and her husband Lee, of Framingham; and two grandchildren, Ben Novick and Olivia Novick, both of Baltimore. She was the sister of the late Ada Traub and Aaron Goldstein. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to Tifereth Israel Congregation, 145 Brownell Avenue, New Bedford MA 02740, or The Friends of Buttonwood Park, PO Box 2011, New Bedford, MA 02741. Her funeral will be on Sunday, June 5th at 2pm at Tifereth Israel Congregation, 145 Brownell Avenue, New Bedford. Burial will follow at Plainville Cemetery, New Bedford with a meal of consolation at Tifereth Israel. Shiva will be observed that evening from 7-9 pm and on Monday from 2-4pm at her late residence.