Greene, Sally Chin Yee September 3, 1958 - October 23, 2026

Sally Chin-Yee Greene was a passionate advocate for all that is good in the world, committed to uplifting the lives of those most in need, and dedicated to her family and friends. She passed away on October 23, 2026 at Westchester Medical Center in Valhalla, NY after sudden complications from a routine, elective surgery. She was 68.

Sally was born September 3, 1958 in Manhattan to David Bo Lung Yee and Sau Han Moy Yee. David, the owner of the fine dining restaurant near the United Nations called The Gold Coin, and Sau Han, a dressmaker and homemaker, immigrated to New York City from Guangdong and Shanghai respectively. David was a Bronze Star recipient due to his valorous WWII service for the US Army in the South Pacific as a paratrooper and scout.

Raised on Mott Street, Sally was the youngest of her four sisters. As a teenager in Little Italy, Sally played on a local girls basketball team called The Legends and was active in the Chinese Conservative Baptist Church. She participated in the Chinatown marching band as a flag twirler and appeared in a number of community theater productions.

From an early age, she felt a strong drive to honor the sacrifices that her parents made in immigrating to the US. Deeply curious and creative, she pursued a career in architecture, which she deemed “practical” art. She studied architecture at Brooklyn Technical High School, where she was a member of the third graduating class to accept girls. At Brooklyn Tech, she also participated in the girls swim and basketball teams.

Sally continued her tenure in Brooklyn by attending Pratt Institute, where she graduated with a Bachelor of Architecture degree. She started the women’s basketball team at Pratt and competed as a point guard at the collegiate level. Sally studied abroad for a year in Rome, an experience that greatly influenced her creatively and intellectually.

In her early career, Sally discovered her love of construction while working at architecture firms such as Delacour Ferrara, Helpern Partners, and David Mandl Architects. She continued her career managing construction projects for the NY State Office of Mental Health, HRH Construction, and Bovis/Lend Lease, where she rose to become a Vice President of Project Management.

While raising her family in Katonah, NY, Sally fulfilled her father’s dream by opening her own business, which she named Artemis Development. Named after the goddess of the hunt, Artemis Development supported clients building affordable and special needs housing, making homes for New York’s most vulnerable: the homeless and marginalized.

Over the course of her twenty-five year career as an owner’s representative, Sally built many thousands of apartments across the five boroughs, working with clients such as Odyssey House, Urban Architectural Initiatives, ACMH, Inc., Catholic Charities, True Colors United, TSAI, and more. Clients knew Sally as a firebrand advocate with an indefatiguable work ethic and attention to detail, reflected in the bold red lipstick she wore while visiting construction sites.

In her final years, Sally lived with her husband in Bronxville, NY. In her free time, she loved going to art museums, attending Broadway shows, traveling with her friends and family, playing pickleball, reading, and relaxing with a cat on her lap. She was a New Yorker through and through, known as much for her fearlessness as for her style. Many regarded her as a force of nature.

She is survived by her husband, Frank Greene, also an architect, and children Charlotte and Jules Greene. Charlotte is an artist and full-time Professor of Interdisciplinary Sculpture at Maryland Institute College of Art and Jules is an artist and entertainment journalist based in Los Angeles.

In lieu of flowers, donations to her various not-for-profit agencies below are requested:

Transitional Services for New York (TSINY)  www.tsiny.org

Catholic Charities of New York www.catholiccharitiesny.org

ACMH, Inc. Care Management & Housing, www.acmh.org