Gloria Lipton of Kingston passed away peacefully at age 91 on Sunday March 31, 2024. She was born on March 5, 1933 in Brooklyn, NY, daughter of Barney and Suzy Moskowitz. She moved to Kingston in 1958 after meeting her future husband, Kingstonian Marshall Carl Lipton.

From early on, Gloria demonstrated the vivaciousness, love of people and deep commitment to making the world a better place that would characterize her entire life. After graduating from Brooklyn College, she pursued her dream of becoming a first grade teacher, which she felt “was the most important job in the world.” She poured herself into her work, determined that every one of her students know how valued and special they were. After giving birth to her beloved children, Elizabeth (Liz) and William (Billy), she retired from teaching but not from her mission, engaging in an endless array of projects to support Ulster County’s children. From helping start the Ulster County Youth Court and working with the Recreation Department on anti-drowning initiatives, to volunteering at the Kingston Public Library and fighting for a skating rink so kids had positive after-school opportunities, Gloria never stopped organizing. Her dream was to take her “We Care About Kids in Ulster County” program worldwide!

Gloria was also an accomplished and tenacious athlete, completing two NYC marathons and hundreds of local road races. She competed in track and field, and was an avid swimmer, ice skater, and ping pong player. She loved painting, sculpture, shell-collecting, writing poetry and especially photography, taking frequent trips to NYC, where she amassed a collection of thousands of photographs with interesting architectural and moral juxtapositions.

Gloria was a true people person, never tiring of meeting new people, listening to their stories and encouraging them to follow their dreams. Her blue eyes reflected the sky she loved to look up at, and the ocean in which she loved to swim. Her smile was pure love. Her grit and determination was pure Brooklyn. Above all, she was the rock of her family and a beloved wife, mother and grandmother. She is survived by her husband of 68 years, Marshall, her children Liz and Billy, and her granddaughter Ora Luz.

In lieu of flowers, please consider the following: Supporting Ulster County’s children by making a contribution to the Kingston Public Library: https://www.kingstonlibrary.org/support/donate/.

Visiting Slabslides, https://www.hudsonrivervalley.com/sites/John-Burroughs-Slabsides-/details, where one of Gloria’s heroes, John Burroughs, wrote many of his nature essays.

Starting a conversation with someone you don’t know.

The family wants to give special thanks and recognition to the heroes in the Brookview Unit at Tenbroeck Center who cared for Gloria with devotion, patience and professionalism through the coronavirus pandemic and after. Their loving care and sacrifice will never be forgotten.