Obituary for the week of October 15, 2021 – J.
Barbara frankel
November 17, 1924 – Sept. 28, 2021
Barbara Frankel, a third generation San Franciscan, passed away peacefully in her apartment in Nob Hill in the early morning hours of September 28, 2021, at the age of 96.
Barbara, a loving and devoted wife, mother, grandmother and great-grandmother, is survived by her children Robert Galoob, David Galoob and Linda Schneidman, her grandchildren Jenna, Lindsey, Lewis, Ariella, Mattie, Lev , Jason, Eric and Jeffrey, and their children Piper, Leila, Noa, Violet, Sadie, Willow, Ayla, Abby, Johnny and Miri.
Barbara has lived a long and rich life surrounded by longtime friends and family. With her first husband in 25 years, Lewis Galoob, she co-founded Lewis Galoob Toys. Together, they raised a family and built a small but stable business. After Lewis passed away, she met Rabbi Jack Frankel, with whom she began the second chapter of her life. For 35 years, Barbara and Jack have been happily married and have often traveled to their beloved Israel and Paris.
As a child, Barbara remembered riding a horse in the Sunset, visiting her father’s slaughterhouse at Hunters Point, and spending afternoons with her grandfather in Playland-at-the-Beach.
Barbara is known for her oversized glasses, her fashion sense and her favorite drink, Chivas on the rocks in a short glass, with a short straw and a splash of soda.
Barbara will be missed by all who knew her.
William Gerald Gottfried
July 9, 1936 – Sept. 29, 2021
Dr. William Gerald Gottfried (Bill), a 50-year-old resident of Orinda, Calif. And a proud member of the Bay Area Jewish community, passed away at his home on September 29, 2021. He was 85 years old and survives him. by his beloved wife of 61 years, Toby, and by his sons, Harry and Louis, their spouses, Leece and Lisa, and by his grandchildren, Abie, Mo, Rachel and Leah, each of whom were the pride and the Bill’s ultimate joy.
Bill was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania on July 9, 1936, attended Central High School at the University of Pennsylvania (where he graduated Phi Beta Kappa), and then attended Jefferson Medical School. He and Toby met on the SS Herzl sailing from Haifa to Marseille in 1959, and were married soon after on June 26, 1960.
Bill received a Fulbright Fellowship and worked at the Great Ormond Street Hospital for Sick Children in London. at Martin Army Hospital, Fort Benning, Ga.
He and Toby moved with their boys to Orinda in 1968, where they joined Temple Beth Abraham in Oakland. They moved to Congregation B’nai Shalom in 1978 in time for Harry’s bar mitzvah, and have been members for 43 years, befriending Rabbi Emeritus Gordon Freeman and his wife, Susan, and more recently, Rabbi Daniel Stein, both part of the memorial service held for Bill on October 1, 2021.
Bill Gottfried began his career as a pediatrician at Kaiser Walnut Creek in 1968 and spent the next 35 years of his life devoting himself to his patients, fellow physicians, nurses and hospital staff, providing some of the first programs and concepts establishing Kaiser’s education program which supported the preventive health model. He was the Chief of Pediatrics at Walnut Creek for many years and regularly met his family of patients throughout the Bay Area, even after his retirement. He was a member of Kaiser’s executive committee and conducted hospital surveys for the Joint Commission.
To his family, he was “Daddy”, “Zayde” or “Billy”, and he was an ever-present, tender and loving husband to Toby until the last day. He loved books (especially mysteries), birdwatching, world travel, art, history, Jewish culture, and Bible studies and was constantly in search of satisfying his eternal thirst for knowledge and education.
Throughout the Covid period, Bill and Toby would benefit from educational programs of all kinds featured on Zoom, allowing Bill to make new friends and maintain existing ones. His mind was sharp and his intellect very sharp until the last days of life. He was an inspiration to all who had the pleasure of knowing him, a friend of Israel, the Jewish community, wildlife, women’s rights and progressive causes around the world.
Her family is deeply saddened by her loss, but we are eternally grateful for her life. We know that his dear memory has been and will be a blessing to all of us for many years to come.
If you are able or interested in making a contribution on his behalf, please consider Congregation B’nai Shalom (in Walnut Creek, CA), Planned Parenthood or the Sierra Club.
Irving Holzberg
November 29, 1938-Oct. 5, 2021
On October 5, 2021, Irving Holzberg passed away in Redwood City, California after a long battle with Parkinson’s disease. Her family was at peace knowing that her suffering was over. He was 82 years old.
Irving is survived by his wife, Lorri Holzberg, children Rachel Hulst and Emily Rakow, and three grandchildren Owen, Evelyn and Cody, as well as his step-sons David Buch and Robert Buch and their families. He was predeceased by his parents Maurice and Diane Holzberg and his sister Ruth Namad.
Irving was born on November 29, 1938 in Cairo, Egypt. He grew up speaking three languages, often in his youth swapping French, Arabic and English all at once. Irving graduated from Victoria College High School in 1955. Throughout his life he enjoyed keeping in touch with his pals at Victoria College in Cairo. At the age of 17, he courageously left Cairo, traveling by boat from Alexandria through Italy and France to England. He eventually obtained a bachelor’s degree in chemical engineering from the University of Manchester in 1959. He then made his father’s dream come true when he traveled to the United States. He attended Cornell University on a full scholarship, where he earned a doctorate. in biochemical engineering in 1966.
Early in his career, he worked as an engineer at General Foods and Johnson & Johnson. He obtained patents relating to a process for decaffeinating coffee. Later in his life, he embarked on a second career in financial planning.
Until Irving became more disabled from Parkinson’s disease, he and his wife Lorri traveled, attended concerts and plays, and spent a lot of time with friends and family.
Simple things in life brought joy to Irving: reading a good book and / or several topical publications, a favorite movie, working on his computer, participating in more in-depth conversations on topics of interest, and moving on. time with family and friends. He could never enjoy his favorite piece of black licorice or chocolate without sharing it with others. He was deeply attached to Judaism, always remembering his stay in Egypt where he had to hide his religion.
Irving was a calm, wise and intellectual man with a generous heart. He lived his life with dignity and strength and always made his family feel safe, protected and loved. Despite his many accomplishments, he was modest and always put others before him. He will be sorely missed.
John Samuel Lowitz, MD
February 25, 1936 – Oct 10, 2021
Born in Rock Island, Illinois on February 25, 1936, son of Samuel and Evelyn Lowitz, John passed away peacefully in Berkeley, California on October 10, 2021 after a long battle with bladder and kidney cancer.
Dr Lowitz was a graduate of Rock Island High School and attended Washington University (St. Louis, MO), graduating from Augustana College (Rock Island, IL), where his 1956 thesis documented the link then not reported between smoking and lung cancer. . He graduated from the University of Illinois College of Medicine (Chicago, Illinois) and served as a medical officer in the US Navy in Key West, Florida during the Vietnam War.
Originally trained as a pediatrician, Dr. Lowitz became a psychiatrist specializing in child, family and group therapy. He worked at the Kaiser Permanente Medical Group in San Francisco and Walnut Creek, Calif., For more than 35 years, becoming deputy chief of psychiatry in San Francisco. He is believed to have been the first person to install blackboards in hospital waiting rooms for children to use, and has been a mentor and teacher for many psychiatric residents.
A bon vivant, Dr Lowitz was a lover of travel, golf, cigars, good food and good wine, and was one of the founders of the FAWTS (Friday Afternoon Wine Tasting Sessions), where he was good friends for life. He was passionate about classical music with eclectic musical tastes, from Paul Simon to Scott Joplin to Stravinsky. His fine ears and insightful palate elevated the musical and epicurean tastes of his friends. He is lovingly remembered for cooking a barbecue from an old oil can cut in half in his garden and for sharing lively gourmet meals with his family and friends.
He served for over 10 years on the board of directors of the Crowden Music Center in Berkeley, California, and was a supporting advisory board member of the Jewish Community Free Clinic in Sonoma County, California.
Dr. Lowitz is survived by his wife and partner of 40 years, Dr. Fran Krieger-Lowitz of Berkeley, and their daughter Saraevelyn Lowitz; daughters Dr Robin Lowitz and son-in-law Ned Hoffman, Leslie Lowitz and Leza Lowitz; and her grandchildren Shaviv, Skyler and Yuto; her brother and sister-in-law, Dr. Robert Lowitz and Carol Lowitz of Walnut Creek; nieces Kelsey Lowitz and Ally Thorndike and their families from California; first cousins Pete and Jan and their children Benjamin and Wanda Temko and Georgia’s family; and Leonard and Janice Temko from New York.
A celebration of John’s life will take place on Sunday, November 14, 2021 at the Crowden Music Center at 1475 Rose St. in Berkeley, CA from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. Please RSVP to [email protected].
In her honor, contributions can be made to the Jewish Community Free Clinic of Sonoma County at 50 Montgomery Drive, Santa Rosa, CA 95404 (jewishfreeclinic.org/opportunities-to-give/donate) and the Crowden Music Center (donate.crowden . org).
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