Betsy Dean

Betsy Dean, former Managing Director at Stribling & Associates and Board member at Goddard Riverside Community Center, passed away on April 24, 2022. Betsy Caroline See was born September 7, 1941 in New York City to Arthur Marx (Cohen) See and Lillian Litman, the youngest of siblings Judith and John. Her father was an executive at Saks Fifth Avenue, and her mother was an operatic mezzo-soprano who gave up a career for marriage. Betsy grew up in Woodmere, NY where she attended school, and some time at Hewlett High School. She then pursued acting and modeling, attended Professional Children’s School and studied at Neighborhood Playhouse. In 1960, Betsy married Myron Usdan, and in 1962, had their son David. Upon a divorce and moving to NYC, Betsy began her career in real estate, starting with Austin K. Haldenstein. Betsy soon rented an apartment to Charles Dean, whom she married in 1968. Around then, Betsy also gave expression to her creativity and style by opening a boutique - Betsy’s Tree - on Amsterdam Avenue. Betsy went on to be Manager at Douglas Elliman, and in 1990 joined Stribling and Associates, later becoming Managing Director. She affectionately was called “Betsy Dean, Co-op Queen.” In 2003, Betsy was honored with the Real Estate Board of New York’s prestigious Henry Forster award for lifetime achievement. She was a dynamic mentor to many. Those who knew her will remember how Betsy always approached life with gusto and a sense of fun. She dearly loved and took care of her family and many friends, and she made everyone she met feel special. Betsy’s zest for life and caring for others led her to serve the community in many ways such as serving dinners to people with AIDS, sponsoring a Vietnamese family, and serving on the Board of Goddard Riverside Community Center, where she especially loved organizing the annual Book Bash. On retiring from Stribling, Betsy became a life coach, trained in Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction. For many years, Betsy had found spirituality and inner peace through meditation. She continued her meditation practice and became a Board member at Community Meditation Center. Betsy found further expression of her creativity through making collages that juxtaposed images in inspiring ways, and she found artistic community at the 92nd Street Y. Betsy unfortunately developed Alzheimer’s disease, cutting short a beautiful life. She leaves behind many people who will always love her dearly, especially her son David Usdan and her son-in law Howard Brenner, grandson Aaron Stringer-Usdan, stepchildren Merrick, Judy, and Peggy Dean (David Willinger) and Ky Hote (Anne Wright) and step-grandchildren Ben and Zak. To honor her memory, please consider a donation in Betsy’s name to CaringKind, to the Alzheimer’s Association-New York Chapter, or to VNSNY Hospice.