Irena Veisaitė passed away December 11 in hospital following a struggle with respiratory infection. She was born in 1928 in Kaunas. Our deepest condolences to her friends and loved ones.
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Aleksandr Naftalovič passed away December 6. He was born in 1956. Our deepest condolences to his widow Laima on our shared loss.
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Zoja Šliachovskaja passed away November 25. She was born in 1930. Our deepest condolences to her son Sergejus, her granddaughter and her many family members and friends.
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In sadness we report the death of Izrailius Tiktinas November 16. He was born in 1943. Our deepest condolences to his daughter Valentina.
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Rachmielis Kulmanas (1929-2020) passed away November 13. We are deeply saddened by his loss and send our deepest condolences to his daughter Dina and granddaughter Jana.
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The Lithuanian Jewish Community together with the World Jewish Congress mourn the passing of UK Chief Rabbi Jonathan Sacks.
We have lost an extraordinarily profound intellect and theologian of deep moral convictions. Rabbi Sacks was a moving speaker and a wonderful writer whose teachings reached Jews and Gentiles, connecting Jewish tradition with modern thinking. His writings, especially his weekly Torah portions, will set an example for future generations.
We extend our deepest condolences to Lord Sacks’s wife Eilaine and their family. May his memory remain as a source of great inspiration.
World Jewish Congress President Mourns Death of Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks
NEW YORK–The World Jewish Congress mourns the death of Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks, the former chief rabbi of the United Hebrew Congregations of the Commonwealth and one of the spiritual and intellectual giants of contemporary Judaism.
Reacting to the news, WJC president Ronald S. Lauder declared: “The World Jewish Congress and the entire Jewish world are profoundly saddened by the passing of former British Chief Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks. A theologian of extraordinary intellectual depth and moral conviction, Rabbi Sacks was a riveting orator and brilliant author who brought the timeless teachings of Jewish scripture to both Jews and non-Jews alike, fusing Jewish tradition with modern thought. His writings, including–and perhaps especially–his commentaries on the weekly Torah portion will be cherished by future generations. He was also a pillar of integrity who inspired Jews and non-Jews alike.
“We extend our deepest condolences to Lord Sacks’s wife Elaine and their family. May they and the whole house of Israel be comforted among the mourners of Zion and Jerusalem, and may his memory be an everlasting blessing and source of inspiration.”
Righteous Gentile Aldona Radzevičienė-Norvaišaitytė Has Died
Sad news came from Kaunas October 2: Righteous Gentile Aldona Radzevičienė-Norvaišaitytė has passed away. Three years ago the Kaunas Jewish Community celebrated her 90th birthday where she even danced the waltz.
She and her family lived in Vilkaviškis where they rescued the Jews Alper Kirkilovski, Haim Chernevski and the sisters Shenka and Tsipka Verber who had escaped the Vilkaviškis ghetto just before it was liquidated and all of whom survived the war. In 1993 then-president Algirdas Brazauskas awarded Aldona the Life-Saver’s Cross and Yad Vashem recognized her as a Righteous Gentile on Junly 16, 2001.
The Lithuanian Jewish Community mourns the loss of Aldona Radzevičienė-Norvaišaitytė together with her family and many friends. Her memory will always remain vivid in our hearts.
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Sad news has arrived from Šiauliai: Righteous Gentile Meilutė Zofia Kalendraitė-Levinskienės has passed away. The Lithuanian Jewish Community extends our deepest condolences to her family, including her husband, children, grandchildren, her sister who is also a Righteous Gentile and to her many friends.
Her father Andrejus Kalendra, enthusiastic about the ideas of the Russian writer Leo Tolstoy, organized the rescue of the Gordimer family from the Šiauliai ghetto. Andrejus Kalendra was a man who was known and respected throughout the area. He organized the operation to save the family together with other members of his family and friends following the Children’s Aktion in the ghetto on November 5, 1943. Six-year-old Sholem was carried out the ghetto in a potato bag and hidden at the Kalendra estate near Žarėnai. He remained there until the summer of 1945.
Due to the efforts of the Kalendra family, their friends and their acquaintances, the entire Gordimer family was saved and went to the USA in 1945.
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The Lithuanian Writers Union reported Dovydas Judelevičius passed away at the age of 95 on September 23, 202, in Vilnius. Dovydas Judelevičius was a member of the union, a literature and theater critic and a translator. He was born October 5, 1925, in Kaunas.
In Memoriam Ronald Harwood
Ronald Harwood, the son of Isaac Hurwich and Isabelle Peper-Hurwich of Plungė who was born November 9, 1934 in the Union of South Africa, passed away in London September 9, 2020.
The Lithuanian Jewish Community expresses our deepest condolences to the family and loved ones of the late Sir Ronald Harwood.
He was graduated from the Sea Point Boys’ High School in Cape Town and in 1951 went to London to pursue an acting career, becoming the friend of and personal assistant to British actor Donald Wolfit, who directed a Shakespeare company. Harwood was nominated for an Oscar for his screenplay for the film Dresser and won an Academy Award for best-adapted screenplay for Pianist. He was awarded the order of Commander of the British Empire and named a fellow of the Royal Society of Literature, among other distinctions.
Harwood visited his parents’ native Plungė, Lithuania, in 2002.
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Naum Dvorkin passed away August 17. He was born in 1940. Our deepest condolences to his wife Jelena and son Eduardas.
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We are saddened to report the death of long-time Community member and member of the minyan Chaim Zagin. He passed away August 3. He was born in 1928. Our deepest condolences to his children and loved ones.
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Active long-time member of the Community Lev Jagniatinskij passed away August 3. He was born in 1926. Our deepest condolences to his son Aleksandras, his grandchildren and his many friends and family.
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Vladimir Brodskij passed away July 9. He was born in 1939. Our deepest condolences to his widow Nina, his brothers and to all his friends and family.
Addio, Maestro. In Memoriam: Ennio Morricone
by Dr. Inna Rogatchi
Windy Morning
On July 6th, 2020, morning, I woke up at 5:21 A.M., almost three hours before my usual awakening. There was no reason for that, I thought at the moment. We still have white nights at this time in Finland so the sun was up for an hour or so. The air was completely clear but without that special morning serenity. I heard the noisy and persistent rustling of branches all around our house, non-stop rustling. The wind was mighty, the weather was stormy. Strange morning, I thought, not quite July-like. I felt like the wind was as if saying something. Not trying to say, but saying in an articulated way. I could not go back to sleep at all.
Full text here.
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Nella Kalichovskaja passed away June 14. She was born in 1927. Our deepest condolences to her niece Marina.
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The Lithuanian Jewish Community extend our deepest condolences to Irena Zingerienė on the death of her beloved mother.
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Svetlana Šapiro, an active member of the Jewish community, passed away June 4. She was born in 1948. Our deepest condolences to her son Guy Šapiro, her grandchildren and many loved ones.
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With sadness we report the death of Jefim Pesin on June 4. He was born in 1937. We extend our sincere condolences to his wife Jevgenija and son Arkadijus.