Dena Sue Brown, 68, of Clifton passed away on January 26, 2023, following a long period of declining health. She was predeceased by her father, Professor G. Wayne Brown, and mother, Mary Evelyn Pryor Brown. She leaves behind her loving husband John Barbaro, her brother-in-law Lou Barbaro and his wife Shirley of New York City, sister Marilyn Anne Brown of Nutley, NJ and sister Glenda Rae Anderson of Camano Island, WA.  She also leaves behind her niece Hailey Abbey, nephews Kyle Anderson and his wife Maggie, Cole Anderson and his wife Roxanne, and many grand nieces and nephews.

Dena was born in Pleasant Hills, CA and grew up in Berkeley, CA graduating Phi Beta Kappa from UC Berkeley in the Haas School of Business. She worked as a CPA at Deloitt Haskins and Sells after college, then other business firms plus independent consulting work until moving to NJ in 2003.

Dena had a great love of dogs and volunteered with several animal rescue groups doing their accounting and fostering many dogs over the years. She spent a year and a half in Kanpur, India, at the Indian Institute of Technology campus with the family when she was 10 years old and was one of the first people to be on the new campus TV station demonstrating Kathak dancing. Dena was a smart and fun-loving person who was great at telling stories and making people laugh.

Funeral services will be private.