Following is the obituary for EILEEN DIANA BLAU, submitted for the family by the Abraham L. Green and Son Funeral Home in Fairfield.

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Eileen Diana Blau, 92, passed away on March 9, 2023, in her longtime Westport home.

Born Eileen Lefkowitz in Brooklyn on July 8, 1930, she was a first-generation American whose Ukrainian born parents immigrated less than a decade earlier. Father Norman (Nachman) was from Bratslav, and a direct descendant of the famed Rabbi Nachman of Bratslav. Mother Mae (Manya) was from a business family in Pechera, a nearby village in the same province of Vinnytsia.

Eileen graduated from Brooklyn College, with a B.S. in mathematics, and it was at a college Socialist Youth League gathering that she met a fellow student, Barry Blau. They were married in 1948 and enjoyed a fabulous 69-year marriage until Barry’s death in 2017, bringing into the world four children, eight grandchildren and two great-grandchildren. 

A passionate reader, artist and collector, Eileen filled her stunning mid-century modern home with thousands of books and an eclectic art collection, ranging from Flemish tapestries to Indonesian Buddhas, ancient Chinese mirrors and sculptures of her own creation. And it was in the basement of this home that she helped her husband launch his business, Barry Blau & Partners, which he grew over 20 years into a leading global advertising agency.

Once her children were grown, Eileen pursued a life of almost infinite interests. She was an avid golfer and tennis player at Westport’s Birchwood Country Club. She had a Manhattan apartment, also art-filled, which was a launching pad for attending classes at the China Institute and the Asia Society, and making frequent visits to museums, galleries and auction houses. 

For many years, Eileen and Barry also maintained a vacation home on the Big Island of Hawaii, which was a frequent winter gathering spot for the entire extended family.

Above all else, Eileen lived for that family — as the most devoted and loving mom and, after raising her own children, lavishing attention on the grandchildren and great-grandchildren, proclaiming each one more amazing than the last. 

In addition to her parents and husband, Eileen was predeceased by her elder sister, Rita Kannel. She is survived by her younger sister, Anita Metz; her children, Shawn Blau and Emily Blau (Robert Cohen), both of Westport, Peter Blau (Barbara Blau) of Belmont, N.C., and Juliet Jenkins (Bruce Jenkins) of Belmont, Mass. She is also survived by grandchildren Lucy Thomas (Kyle Thomas), James Blau, Michael Blau (Julie Blau), Lucas Jenkins, Maddie Jenkins, Tess Jenkins, Benjamin Cohen and Veronica Blau, and great-grandchildren Claire and Charles Thomas.

Funeral services will be held on Monday, March 13, at 11 a.m., at the Abraham L. Green Funeral Home and Son, 88 Beach Road, Fairfield. Shiva will be observed at the Blau home in Westport on the same day from 1-6 p.m. For more information and to share a condolence message, visit www.greensfuneralhome.com.