She was born in the Bronx, the elder daughter of Nathan Winnik and Rose Winnik, on March 27, 1924. She graduated from Walton High School, where many of her classmates described her as "sweet" and "swell." Her best friend, Lenore, wrote, "May we always continue to be as good friends as we are now," and they did, until Lenore died.
Shirley took some classes at City College of New York but, needing to help support her family, went to work for a company that evaluated estates. She met Robert Sandomir at the Woodbourne Sky House, in the Catskills, in 1946 and married him in March, 1947. They had two sons, Richard and Larry, whom Shirley raised on her own after their divorce. In 1969, she married Hy Winikoff, who died in 2003.
From 1961 to 1997, she worked as a legal secretary for several law firms and enjoyed the work immensely. She came to believe that she had an affinity for the law, and wished she had become a lawyer.
She was a loving grandmother of Justin and Rachel, and great-grandmother of Delilah, Minka, Neve and Ryan.
