Harriet Madeo Rowan

Harriet Madeo Rowan, Carle Place Business Owner Dies at 99

Harriet M. Rowan, long-time Westbury resident and founder of Rowan Realty in Carle Place, died peacefully on February 24, 2020 at the home of her sister Carole Zeilman who was her loving caretaker for many years. Mrs. Rowan was born on August 5, 1920 in New York City, the oldest of the six children of Louis and Frances Bracigliano Madeo. She attended Theodore Roosevelt High School in the Bronx and upon graduation became a stenographer at the Graybar Electric Company where she met her husband Gordon Rowan. The two married in 1940, raised three daughters, and enjoyed nearly fifty years of marriage before his death in 1990. In 1964, Mrs. Rowan founded Rowan Realty -- becoming one of only a handful of female business owners in the area at the time.  She served as the broker for that concern until her retirement in 2012 at the age of 92. Rowan Realty continues to serve the community and remains family owned. Mrs. Rowan was also the beloved matriarch of a large, close-knit extended family. She is fondly remembered as a fiercely independent business woman with a generous heart, great legs and a killer instinct for cards. She is survived by her three daughters, Frances Calhoun (Marc) of Columbus, GA, Gail Warner of Sparta, NJ and Carol Ruggiero of St. Augustine, FL, seven grandchildren, ten great-grandchildren, two sisters, Carole Zeilman and Florie Hausman, and many loving nieces and nephews. She was predeceased by siblings John Madeo, Rita Viggiano and Anita Sweeney. The family offers their profound thanks to Mrs. Rowan’s caregiver Marcelle Johnson who enriched her final years with laughter and friendship. Mrs. Rowan will be celebrated with a visitation at Donohue Cecere Funeral Home in Westbury on March 6, 2020 from 10am to 12pm, followed by a 12pm service. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Carle Place Fire Department, 460 Broadway, Carle Place, NY 11514. 

 

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