Elaine Ruth Berman

Dec. 18, 1936 – Dec. 8, 2017

Elaine Ruth Berman passed away peacefully at her home in Santa Monica on Dec. 8 after a long struggle with cancer. To the end of her days, she lived her life with grace and dignity, with care for others and with love for—and of—her family.

Elaine’s extraordinary life included her 40-year marriage to Arthur “Art” M. Berman, who passed away in 1996, three children, seven grandchildren and three beloved children-in-law.

She was a school counselor for 28 years, helping hundreds of students achieve their dreams of preparing for a college education. She loved the arts, particularly music, theater and literature, and was an avid concert-goer, theatre subscriber and reader to her last days.

In the ’70s, Elaine, Art and their children, Michael, Tonia and Daniel, moved to Pacific Palisades, and Elaine began a career as a teacher, which would ultimately lead to her career in counseling. She spent six years as a counselor at the Los Angeles Center for Enriched Studies, a 6-12 grade magnet school in inner-city Los Angeles.

In 1991 Elaine was chosen to participate in the Fulbright Exchange program. Returning to Los Angeles in 1992, she became the college counselor for LACES. Giving every student the opportunity to prepare for and find a college where they could be successful became an urgent passion for her. After leaving LACES, she was director of college counseling at Wildwood School in West Los Angeles from 2002-07.

Elaine spent her last 20 years living at Sea Colony II in Santa Monica. She loved living near the ocean, and sharing the beach with friends and family who visited from near and far.

Elaine leaves her son (Arthur) Michael Berman and wife Ann Walker of Los Angeles, their son Adam Jacob and daughter Alice Bates; her daughter Tonia Jean Berman and husband Michael Bernstein of San Diego, their daughters Lauren Elizabeth (and husband Jake) and Meghan Nicole; and her son Daniel Adlai Berman and wife Melinda of Pacific Palisades and their sons Timothy Jordan, Christopher Taylor and Thomas Arthur.

A Celebration of Life was held on Dec. 30. For more information, visit elaineruthberman.com.