Deborah Winegar

Deborah Winegar (née Schonfeld), analytic psychotherapist, passed away on November 28, 2021 after a long illness. It was the first night of Hanukah, the anniversary of the death of her mother, Ruth. While different than her mother in many ways, like her, Deborah prized authenticity, candor, and dedication to a calling that offered help to individuals in need. Such was Deborah’s commitment and insight as well as her infectious gift for seeing the humor in life’s foibles that she enjoyed a multi-decade career as one of the sought-after practitioners in the competitive world of New York City psychotherapists.

After closing her practice, Deborah, a lifelong New Yorker, relocated to South Carolina, at the urging of her late husband Jack Winegar, also a psychotherapist. The marriage ended there. Deborah then moved to Charlotte, North Carolina, to continue a renewed life, pouring her passions into visual arts. Paintings and monoprints by her were exhibited and purchased in juried gallery shows in New York and in Charlotte, where she won an award. Retirement gave Deborah the chance to savor meditation retreats and natural beauty in solo and group travel, while at home she enjoyed beloved canine companions. Her years in Charlotte also included a bout with cancer, which she endured thanks to medical help and the support of a circle of close friends.

Deborah gained her BA at the City College of New York, her Masters in Social Work at Hunter College, and trained as a therapist at the Postgraduate Psychoanalytic Institute in New York City.

Deborah was born on September 3, 1943 in Manhattan. Her parents were Moses and Ruth Schonfeld, an international news correspondent and a professional careers counsellor. Deborah Winegar is survived by her sister, Jo-Ann Harrison PhD, retired university professor and mediator, of Bethesda, Md, and by Victor S. Schonfeld FRSA, filmmaker and writer, of London, England. Her nieces and nephews include Nathan Harrison, Aura Schonfeld and Oscar Schonfeld.

Charitable donations can be made to the Jewish Social Services of Greater Washington - https://www.jssa.org/