Violent Fineman was born on March 24, 1914 in Hennepin, Minnesota to Marcus and Fannie Fineman. Her parents Marcus and Fannie were natives of the Kovno Governorate (Russian: Ковенская губеpния or Kovenskaja gubernija; Lithuanian: Kauno gubernija) which is now part of Belarus, Latvia and Lithuania. Violet’s older siblings Adolph, Freedman, Herman, Helena and Leo were born in Manchester, England, where her parents lived prior to immigrating to the United States. In 1907, the family moved to Minneapolis, where Marcus’s brother lived; Fannie’s father paid for their passage to the United States. Violet and her siblings Leo, Rosie, Lillian and Albert were born in Minnesota. The Fineman family moved to Minneapolis during a period of Jewish immigration growth from Germany and Eastern Europe; from the early 1900s to 1910, Minnesota's Jewish population grew from 6,000 to 13,000.
Violet and Lillian later moved to Miami, Florida, where they lived together. In 1940, Violet worked as a cashier, and Lillian was a waitress.
Violet and Lillian stayed close throughout their lives, and later both moved to Astoria.
Lillian preceded Violet in death in November 1979, and Violet passed away in January 1981.