Obituary of Pearl Cousin

Cousin, Pearl (nee Drescher), 84, of Goldens Bridge, NY died peacefully on May 9, 2016 at Rosary Hill Home in Hawthorne. Pearl was born on March 27th, 1932 in Brooklyn, NY to William and Gertrude (nee Gutterman) Drescher, whose families immigrated to NY to escape oppression in Poland and Russia. While staunchly secular, Pearl strongly identified with her progressive Jewish heritage throughout her life. In her early teens, Pearl discovered dance, which became her lifelong passion. She moved to Manhattan, where she studied with Pearl Primus and Bob Joffrey, and danced semi-professionally in the New Dance Group in the mid-1950’s until starting her family. After moving to Goldens Bridge full time in 1969, Pearl danced with the Potpourri Dancers, and began teaching dance therapy to autistic children in the early days of the Westchester Exceptional Children’s School (WEC). She worked as a teacher at WEC for two decades, and also worked part time at Opengate, a residence for adults with developmental disabilities. After retiring from WEC, Pearl enjoyed traveling and playing tennis. Pearl is survived by her husband of 58 years, Kenneth, her daughter Merril (Julia, Anna), her son Rick, niece Wendy Drescher Rosete (Jose, Melanie, Christian), and nieces and nephews Jennifer, Jonathon, Mark, Paula, Laure, and Bruce. An informal memorial will be held on Sunday May 22nd, 2016 from 2:00 – 4:00 PM at the Barn on Hall Avenue in Goldens Bridge, NY. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to Rosary Hill Home (600 Linda Ave. Hawthorne, NY 10532) or the Alzheimer’s Association (2900 Westchester Ave., Suite 306 Purchase, NY 10577 www.alz.org )