The 49-year-old personal trainer from Roxburgh completed the race alongside about 50,000 others yesterday, achieving a goal she originally set in 2011.
That was the year she collapsed at the Auckland half-marathon, which she was running in an attempt to qualify for the event in New York City.
Not long after she was shocked to find she had a heart condition, which required a pacemaker.
She did not let that stop her, though, getting back into running and gaining an entry to the 2012 race via the ballot.
But it was not meant to be.
The event was cancelled the night before due to Hurricane Sandy.
A marathon was held in the city as a make-up event, which she ran, although it was not the New York marathon experience she dreamed of.
This year, two weeks before her 50th birthday, she returned to complete the goal.
Picked as New Zealand's flag bearer for the event because of her story, she said it was a special race and everything she thought it would be.
``I was trying not to get too excited before,'' Feinerman told the Otago Daily Times from New York after the race.
``Everyone I was with was super excited and I was kind of not super excited, because when I came over in 2012 it was cancelled because of the hurricane.
``I just got so disappointed that I didn't want to get disappointed again.
``So I guess I was just trying to hold everything in until today and then when I started running I had a really good feeling that I was going to do it.''
The race drew runners from all over the world - including about 200 New Zealanders - and she said it was special to see how running united people of different nationalities.
One of those, a Brazilian man named Bruno, made the end of the race that much more special for Feinerman.
She completed a global heroes marathon in Minneapolis in 2013 alongside her husband, Carl, a race in which 25 people who benefited from medical technology were chosen to participate.
Having set up a Facebook page after that, she came into contact with Bruno, who was chosen to run in last year's event. The pair had intended to meet up in New York, although the meeting came unexpectedly.
``At 5km to go [Bruno] came running up behind me and he was like `Sally I can't believe this' and he helped me get through the last 5km.
``I said `I'm feeling really tired' and he's like `no, that's what us heroes are here for' and he ran with me for the last 5km.
``He could have easily gone faster, but he stayed with me so it was pretty special when we crossed the finish line together.''
She crossed the line in 4hr 42min 29sec.
There was not much time for her to rest either. While she enjoyed dinner in Times Square last night, her next big event - the Queenstown half marathon - was two weeks away.
