Thursday, October 1, 2026
Susan Gruen Helsinger, a Merrick philanthropist, real estate leader and advocate for children’s heart health whose foundation helped identify potentially life-threatening cardiac conditions in Long Island students, died June 15.
Helsinger, a former president of the Long Island Board of Realtors and the Herald’s 2016 Person of the Year, spent more than four decades transforming personal tragedy into a mission that touched countless lives across Long Island.
After the sudden death of her 15-year-old son, Jason Gruen, from hypertrophic cardiomyopathy in 1985, Helsinger founded the Jason Gruen Foundation to support cardiac research, hospital programs and early detection efforts aimed at preventing similar tragedies.
The foundation became a driving force behind pediatric heart-health initiatives on Long Island, helping fund children’s heart centers at Columbia Presbyterian Medical Center and Cohen Children’s Medical Center, supporting research into cardiac abnormalities and bringing heart screenings to local schools.
Beginning in 2006, Helsinger worked to establish voluntary cardiac screening programs for middle school students, first in the Bellmore-Merrick Central High School District and later in other districts across Long Island. The screenings helped identify dozens of children with heart abnormalities, some of them life-threatening, allowing families to seek treatment before a medical emergency occurred.
For her efforts, Helsinger was named the Herald’s Person of the Year in 2016.
A former nurse and entrepreneur, Helsinger built several successful businesses before entering real estate. By age 25, she was a founding partner of Gruen Optika Corporation in New York City. Later, she co-owned a toy store in Great Neck before returning to school after Jason’s death, earning a paralegal degree from Adelphi University and becoming a licensed real estate broker.
She and her late husband, Jay Helsinger, founded the Custom Real Estate Group and JSC Building Corporation. Following Jay’s death in 2004, she assumed sole ownership of the brokerage and continued to lead the company until it was acquired by Douglas Elliman Real Estate, where she remained an associate broker.
Helsinger joined the Long Island Board of Realtors in 1994 and became one of the organization’s most influential leaders. She served in numerous leadership positions before becoming president in 2021. She also served on the boards of the New York State Association of Realtors and the National Association of Realtors.
In announcing her death, the Long Island Board of Realtors remembered Helsinger as a leader whose dedication to advocacy, professionalism and service helped shape the organization and inspire future generations of realtors.
“Susan led with grace, strength and a lifelong dedication to helping others, both within the real estate profession and throughout the communities she served,” the organization said in a statement.
Helsinger also served as a past president of the Merrick Kiwanis Club, vice president of the Merrick Chamber of Commerce, and a leader in the Jewish War Veterans Auxiliary, and was an active supporter of numerous charitable and community organizations throughout Nassau County.
“Susan’s compassion for helping others was boundless and demonstrated by the numerous organizations she served,” said Doug Mills, a board member and past president of the Merrick Chamber of Commerce. “Her determination for rising above challenging situations was remarkable.
Her endless list of accomplishments will be remembered by all the lives she impacted and changed for the better. She was an amazing woman, and I was proud to call her my friend.”
Over the years, Helsinger received numerous honors, including Merrick Woman of the Year, the New York State Senate’s Woman of Distinction Award, the National Association of Realtors’ Good Neighbor Award, the New York State Association of Realtors Community Service Award and multiple recognitions from the Long Island Board of Realtors, including its Spirit Award and Lifetime Achievement Award.
She also authored the memoir “Glass Half Full,” chronicling her experiences with loss, resilience and service.
