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Libby Seiden - Class of 1976
Submitted by Bill Norvell 1965 <w.norvell@att.net> on 20/May/2018 108.75.157.246
Libby Seiden - Class of 1976 - Born Nov. 24, 1959 Died Dec. 26, 1993 in Newburgh
Libby's killer still roams
Parents hope $25,000 can lead to justice
NEWBURGH – Almost five years after Libby Dawn Seiden was murdered, her killer is
still unknown. Seiden's body was found Dec. 26, 1993. A worker for the Patterson
Materials Corp. had stopped at the plant on Walsh Road in New Windsor to check
on the building. He found Libby just after 10:30 a.m. Her body was face-down in
the yard in front of Patterson, out in the open, about 30 feet from the road.
She had been shot once in the chest, once in the top of the head. She was left
to die there, alone, in the bitterly cold night. This is the part that is so
sad: She was getting her life back together, said Libby's mother, Brenda Seiden.
The Seidens met with a reporter in their home on Susan Drive, a quiet
residential street in Balmville. Mrs. Seiden said Libby was sometimes
rebellious, a headstrong young woman who seemed to need to do everything in her
own way. Libby's path led her in and out of colleges and the military. Her
parents said her friendships were sometimes rocky and one-sided, as if Libby
craved more devotion than most people were willing to return. "A day doesn't go
by that we don't talk about her, think about her," said Libby's father, Joseph
Seiden. "It's very difficult." Even now, among the soft cushions of their living
room couches, delicate figurines on glass shelves, and walls lined with
portraits, talking about their dead child pains them. The heartache will grow in
the next few weeks. The pain is greatest near Thanksgiving, because Libby was
born on Nov. 24. Libby Seiden was 34 years old when she died. She was about 5
feet 6 inches tall and 170 pounds, with shoulder-length brown hair. She had a
sweet, almost wistful, smile. New Windsor police have not given up on Libby's
case. Detective Stephen Sager said he interviewed someone about her a couple of
weeks ago. In April, the FBI found new hair and fiber trace evidence on her
clothing and they were able to get a DNA sample. They are examining the
evidence, Sager said. Libby Seiden was the youngest of three children. Her
brother, Neil, 43, is a naval commander, who lives in Annandale, Va. Her sister,
Gail, 41, lives in Holmes, Dutchess County. Mrs. Seiden taught for 26 years at
the Vails Gate Elementary School, and her husband worked for Harper & Row
Publishers in New York City. When Libby was in the eighth grade, the family
moved to Balmville. Libby went to North Junior High School, then on to the
Newburgh Free Academy. She was an excellent student, Mrs. Seiden said, although
socially she seemed to lag a little behind the other children. Since she was
born in late November, she was always one of the youngest children in the class.
"She had a super sense of humor. She could find humor in the most ridiculous
kinds of situations," Mrs. Seiden said. After Libby graduated from NFA, she
tried her hand at Orange County Community College. She got caught up in all
sorts of causes including women and environmental issues. Libby tended to get so
caught up that she would neglect her homework. She didn't stay long at OCCC, her
mother said. Libby went through brief tenures at SUNY New Paltz and SUNY
Cortland, but always her enthusiasm for causes interfered with schoolwork. She
left school, took a factory job for a time. At one point, she joined the Army
Reserves. Libby was honorably discharged in June 1986. She spent time in New
York City, trying to break into the jewelry business. Libby loved to make
jewelry, her parents said, and was able to get some pieces accepted into the
gift shop at the Smithsonian Institute. She graduated from the Swedish Institute
of Massage in New York City. In the end, Libby came back to Newburgh. But by
mid-1992, something wasn't right. She had always had some problems and had been
in counseling off and on. Her parents said her poetry seemed to indicate
depression. Her life was chaotic, as she seemed to drift from place to place,
cause to cause, job to job. "Her problems were multiple. Basically, I think it
was a personality disorder," Mrs. Seiden said. While her parents were away on a
trip in early 1992, Libby temporarily checked herself into The Cornwall
Hospital. A counselor there told her she would be better off living on her own.
The Seidens weren't certain why, because their daughter didn't like to discuss
her therapy. Still, the move helped Libby. "It was really better for her to live
by herself, and she couldn't hold a job," Mrs. Seiden said.
Libby Seiden, 34, was found shot at 322 Walsh Ave. in New
Windsor. Seiden lived in the City of Newburgh at the Hotel Newburgh. She was a
headstrong young woman who had trouble finding her way in life. She bounced
through a few colleges and a stint in the National Guard (honorably discharged),
made jewelry in New York City and obtained a New York State license to be a
masseuse. She struggled with depression, but by the time of her death was was
again attending Orange County Community College. She was last seen getting into
a car at 11 p.m. on Christmas night, and her body was found early on 12/26 at a
business parking lot, shot execution-style.
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