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Deborah Marlowe Hauser died peacefully at age 86 on February 11, 2023, after a period of declining health. She faced the end of her life as she did everything else, with grace and dignity. To the end, Deborah remained actively connected with and engaged in the lives of beloved family and friends.
Three generations of Deborah’s progeny will remember her with smiles. She and her husband Harry Hauser built their family and shared an almost-five-decade-long marriage, until his passing in 2003. Deborah often said she had wanted “four sons, four years apart” and indeed – from age 19 to 31, every four years – she and Harry welcomed their sons Mark, Joshua, Bradford and Matthew. Deborah appreciated her connection with the families of her sons and their wives, Andrea, Kate, Nurit and Susan, and felt blessed at each milestone reached by the grandchildren and great-grandchildren she had the pleasure of knowing: Jeff and George; Zach and Jake; Daniel (and his wife Einav), Jonathan, Tuvya, and Rachel; Ben and Alex; and Ariel, Yair and Lavi.
Deborah grew up in Brooklyn and Great Neck, New York. Her younger brother, Brian Marlowe, survives Deborah; their older sister, Nina Marlowe, predeceased her. As a child, Deborah was a disciplined student and a lover of books and art. Before she chose to defer her studies to begin her family, she was prepared to study Art History at Barnard College.
Deborah enjoyed a lifelong love of literature: she read avidly, recommended astutely, and supported public libraries everywhere she lived. She appreciated art and enthusiastically introduced her children and grandchildren to museums in Boston and New York. The Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum was a particular favorite. Over decades, Deborah created beautiful needlepoint works, many customized as special gifts for children and grandchildren. Deborah played the piano, attended the Boston Symphony Orchestra’s performances weekly for years and years, and had classical music playing in her home from dawn to dusk. She served many institutions, including Big Sister Boston, the Wang Center, the Boston Museum of Fine Arts, the Temple Israel Sisterhood, the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, and the Boston Symphony Orchestra, where she was ultimately named an Adviser Emeritus.
Deborah was a beautiful woman at every age, and suffused her homes and endeavors with beauty, style, and elegance. With her green thumb, she nurtured plants with amazing results. Her gardenias bloomed year after year and she gifted generations of spider plants to family and friends. Her homes displayed her mindfully collected and curated art, furniture, and curios. Family and friends appreciated but could not match Deborah’s consistently conscientious correspondence; she kept postal services busy delivering notes and cards around the United States and to destinations in Canada and Israel.
Deborah participated actively in Jewish life, marking the weekly Sabbath, supporting numerous communities’ institutions, and engaging in lifelong learning. She loved to travel and her many journeys to Israel were among her favorites.
Deborah and Harry chose Newton, Massachusetts as a wonderful place to raise their sons. Later they enjoyed their Lake Winnipesaukee life together. Deborah was fortunate at age 70 to embark on her friendship with David Booth. In recent years, Deborah settled into a daily routine centering on caring for Gus (her Yorkshire Terrier) and Fred (her lovebird parrot) and, with David, dining at their favorite restaurants and exploring the New Hampshire and Maine coasts. Deborah and David shared 16 beautiful years of travel, adventure and companionship in and beyond Wolfeboro and Exeter, New Hampshire and David will feel her absence deeply.
In every endeavor, Deborah touched the lives of the people she met, sharing her friendship and love. Many more people than just her sons and grandchildren appreciated and benefited from her maternal love, support and wisdom. Deborah will be missed by family and uncountable friends.
Rest in peace, Deborah, Mom, Gram. We’ll all continue to love you “millions and billions”, x 4.
Services at 11:30 am Tuesday, February 14, Temple Emanuel, 385 Ward St, Newton Centre, MA., 02459. Burial at Temple Emeth Cemetery, 776 Baker St. West Roxbury. Shiva will follow the burial and be held at Temple Emanuel from 2pm – 5pm and on Wednesday and Thursday evening from 6pm – 8pm at the home of Dr. Mark and Andrea Hauser.