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NETTA BERMAN was a woman of wide-ranging talent, deep commitment, and relentless energy. After earning her master's degree from Western Reserve University, she embarked on a distinguished career in psychiatric social work. For a quarter century, she worked at groundbreaking institutions like Bellefaire and Hill House, marshaling all her organizational skills, creativity, and professional expertise to help vulnerable young people and psychiatric patients achieve independence. However, nothing gave her greater pride and satisfaction than her work as a union organizer and representative, championing the rights of hard-working staff at social agencies in the Cleveland area.

Although a Clevelander to the core, Netta was also an enthusiastic traveler, touring Europe and the Americas extensively with her husband Norm and their close friends, the Brudnos. An avid lifelong learner, she enrolled in a series of university courses after retirement, learning Spanish and writing on subjects close to her, including the labor movement and the Federal Art Project. She was a devoted supporter of Cleveland's cultural scene—most especially the theater, in which her husband, Norm Berman, was active for many years, but also music and art. She was actively committed to social justice and deeply involved in community affairs. At the same time, she never stinted in her devotion to family and friends.

Netta Berman passed away peacefully on March 18, 2017, at the age of 93.