Kathy Greene, 92, dies; longtime teacher's aide at Cleary School for the Deaf

When Kathy Greene took a job as a teacher's aide for deaf children, she did not know any American Sign Language. Although she quickly learned how to sign, it was her warmth, contagious laugh and pure love for children that made her a treasured teacher, said family and friends.

The Kings Park resident died of natural causes on June 28 at St. Catherine of Siena Nursing and Rehabilitation Care Center in Smithtown. She was 92.

Greene's time as a teacher's aide at the Cleary School for the Deaf in Nesconset left a profound impact on her and those she worked with during a 30-year tenure.

"Kathy was bigger than life. She was an absolutely wonderful person and had a sense of dedication that was fantastic," said Sister Catherine Fitzgibbon, Greene's friend and a former colleague. "Her warmth was palpable. She was constantly present to the people she met and gave her support to anything that was happening in the school. Her school spirit was beyond."

Greene worked one on one with children who were deaf and had learning disabilities. According to Fitzgibbon, Greene "gave of herself every day, and every child took all her attention."

Learned sign language

Her early years at the school also created a favorite memory for her son, Robert "Bob" Greene Jr.

"When my mother was learning sign language, kids at the school were being kids and one of them gave her the middle finger. She went to her colleague and asked what it meant because she couldn't find the sign in the sign language books," said Greene Jr., 71, of Oak Island, North Carolina. "That just showed how pure she really was."

Born on Oct. 18, 1930, in Jersey City, Kathleen Greene was known for her caring persona and inimitable kindness. In 1950, she married Robert W. Greene, who — during his 37 years as a reporter and later, the creator and leader of the investigations team at Newsday — helped the paper twice win the Pulitzer Prize for public service. The couple had two children, son Greene Jr. and daughter Lea. Robert W. Greene died in 2008.

"My father always said that the bravest person he ever knew in his life was my mother," Greene Jr. said. "They truly enjoyed each other's company and knew what friendship meant."

Tragedy struck the family in 1989, when Greene's daughter was murdered during a burglary at her Smithtown apartment. According to Greene Jr., when the family was in court, his mother got up and hugged the parents of the two men who took her daughter's life.

"She wasn't a holy person, but she lived the world of the Bible," Greene Jr. said of his mother.

Generous grandmother

She also enjoyed spending time with her grandchildren and was generous to them. "She spoiled them rotten with trips to Toys R Us and let them get whatever they wanted. She loved to make little kids happy," her son said.

Greene also enjoyed doing puzzles and word searches, listening to music and watching ice skating.

Longtime friend Robert Creighton, a retired Suffolk County police commissioner and fellow Kings Park resident, had known Greene since she moved to the hamlet in 1959. "My wife and I frequently went out to dinner with Kathy and Bobby. We ate at the best restaurants, Bob being a connoisseur of food," said Creighton. "Kathy was a very pleasant and all-around nice woman."

"I think she would want to be remembered as a real person," Greene Jr. added. She "had many blessings, and she gave to all."

Kathy Greene is survived by her son, four grandchildren and four great-grandchildren.

A funeral Mass was celebrated at Church of St. Joseph in Kings Park, with interment at St. Patrick's Cemetery in Smithtown alongside her husband and daughter.