S. McGraw-Silverstone
Sally McGraw-Silverstone, a Montauk resident for three decades who was known as Pooch, died on March 13 at Stony Brook University Hospital after a short illness. She was 88 and had pneumonia. She was a longtime supporter of the Montauk Library, where a gathering in her honor will be held today from 2 to 4 p.m.
“She was the best companion I know,” said a niece, Dani Dolence of Tyler, Tex., adding that “there were too many best friends to mention,” her mother among them.
Ms. McGraw-Silverstone loved painting, and was an amateur watercolorist. She had taken piano lessons as a child, and continued to enjoy music. With her husband, she attended recitals at the library and outdoor summer jazz concerts. She was an avid reader as well and became an accomplished baker after moving to Montauk, tackling complicated pie and Christmas cookie recipes. She also enjoyed planning healthy meals to serve to others.
The youngest daughter of immigrant Serbian parents, Damian Prodnick and the former Anna Skaljac, she was born on Nov. 23, 1929, in Girard, Ohio. She attended Kent State University in Ohio and Hunter College in New York City, where she lived for two decades beginning in the 1960s.
Her niece said she had enjoyed being a working woman and got a job at NBC, becoming its director of communications, where she met some of its stars, such as Johnny Carson, and found herself able to go to such first-class restaurants as Le Pavillon. She met her husband, Bob Silverstone, who survives, while working in the city.
After she retired, the couple moved to Montauk, where she and her husband volunteered for several organizations, with the Friends of the Montauk Library at the top of the list. Ms. McGraw-Silverstone also volunteered at the Animal Rescue Fund of the Hamptons thrift shop. Her association with ARF had another impact, Ms. Dolence said. “Gradually the house filled with members of the feline persuasion.”
Two previous marriages ended in divorce. Besides Mr. Silverstone, to whom she had been married for 35 years, Ms. McGaw-Silverstone is survived by three stepchildren, Sara Silverstone, David Silverstone, and James Silverstone. Four step-grandchildren also survive.
Ms. McGraw-Silverstone was cremated. Memorial contributions have been suggested to the Montauk Public Library, 871 Montauk Highway, Montauk11954, or the Animal Rescue Fund of the Hamptons, P.O. Box 901, Wainscott 11975.