Nancy Brightman Goldstein

A wonderful wife, loving mother to two daughters, grandmother to three children, and great-grandmother to four children. Nancy Goldstein passed away peacefully at the Transitions Life-Care Hospice in Raleigh, North Carolina.

Nancy was born in Rochester, New York and attended college at the State University of New York. After her first marriage, she moved to Florida in 1969 with her daughter, Pamela, to live with her mother. At a family function shortly after she moved to Florida, she ran into Barry. His older brother was married to Nancy’s older sister, Ellen. They met occasionally when they were teenagers, but never had any interest in one another. That quickly changed, and they married on June 7, 1970 and had 51 wonderful years together. As her children, Pamela and Melissa, got older, Nancy decided to go back to school and received her Masters degree in Social Work from Barry University in Miami and her LCSW. She was a counselor to many clients in public and private practice and loved being able to help people. Nancy was a great partner to her husband and together they enjoyed a beautiful life with the joy of raising a family and traveling around the world. Nancy enjoyed going to Macgregor Country Club on Wednesday evenings to have dinner with “the girls” and playing Hand and Foot which she described as a “mindless game” that allowed her to enjoy an evening with her friends. She truly missed the companionship of those evenings during the COVID pandemic when she was home bound for 18 months because of her COPD. During this time, Nancy used her artistic flair to start using paint and colored pencils to make 5”x 7” canvasses for ailing children. Her art included cute caricatures of animals with the words “LOVE” and “HOPE” on them. She donated these works to Children’s Flight of Hope, The Ronald McDonald House at Duke, and the WakeMed Children’s Hospital in Raleigh. She received great joy from being able to bring smiles and hope to many sick children and their families.

Nancy’s priority was always her family to which she provided undying love and nurture. She was loved by all who met her. Nancy was predeceased by her mother and father, Jessie and Norman Brightman, her sister, Ellen Goldstein, and her Brother-in-Law, Ken Goldstein. She is survived by her husband, Barry Goldstein, her daughters, Pamela O’Leary and Melissa Matyuf, her grandchildren, Nicole Baez, Zachary O’Leary, and Ashley Hardy, and four great-grandchildren as well as her dog, Sammy. Nancy’s family would like to thank the staff at Transitions Life-Care Hospice in Raleigh for their compassionate and skillful care of Nancy in the last days of her life. One could not find a group of more empathetic caregivers.

Services to honor Nancy’s life will be held at Brown-Wynne Funeral Home at 200 S.E. Maynard Road, Cary, NC 27511 on July 18, 2021 at 2:00 pm with an opportunity to visit with the family after the ceremony. The rabbi has requested that we require masks to be worn during the ceremony. The family requests that in lieu of flowers, donations be made to Transitions Life-Care in Raleigh, North Carolina.