Helen Sierles

Helen Gross Sierles (Fishman), 102, of Lenox, Mass., died Aug. 1, 2014. Born in New York City, she and her family moved to New Haven, Conn., at age four, where she grew up. She also had lived in Maplewood and South Orange.

Mrs. Sierles earned a teaching degree in 1931 from what is now New Haven University.

She was a pianist with perfect pitch who played piano accompaniments during silent movies. She loved the arts, especially painting and classical music. 

Predeceased by a daughter, Eleanor, in 1945, and her husbands, George Gross in 1971 and Samuel Sierles in 1997, she is survived by a daughter, Sandra Newman of Stockbridge, Mass.; her son, Peter (Elizabeth) Gross of South Salem, NY; two sisters, Lillian Chasnoff of Hamden, Conn., and Charlotte Schwartz of Great Neck, NY; five grandchildren; and four great-grandchildren. 

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Services were held Aug. 8 with arrangements by Finnerty & Stevens Funeral Home. Memorial contributions may be made to Hudson River Sloop Clearwater, Inc.; The Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence; or Community Access to the Arts via Finnerty & Stevens Funeral Home, 426 Main St., Great Barrington, MA 01230.