Jack Weiss, 93, of Valhalla, NY, died after a brief illness on January 3rd. He was the beloved husband of Barbara (Greher) Weiss for 69 and a half years, who survives him. Loving father of Amy, of Wakefield, RI and Michael (Heidi) of Greenwich, CT, of whom he was very proud; adored grandfather of Melanie (Rachel) Weiss of Waterville, ME and Jeremy Weiss of Baltimore, MD; and two great-granddaughters of Waterville, ME.
He was the son of Morris Weiss and Mamie Schwartz, both of New York City, who predeceased him. Besides his parents, he was predeceased by his sister, Evelyn Leon, his nephew, Sheldon, and a number of brothers-in law and sisters-in law.
Born and raised on the Lower East Side of Manhattan and a graduate of Stuyvesant High School, Jack enlisted in the Army Air Corps shortly after his graduation in 1943 and served in the Pacific theater of World War II as a technical specialist until his discharge in 1946. When asked about his service, he would say, “I fixed the planes. I didn’t fly them.” His acumen when it came to fixing things was evident throughout his adult life. After a number of years in retail, Jack returned to school and earned both a B.S. and M.S. in Special Education from NYU at night while working full-time as an industrial arts teacher in the Bronx, both at P.S. 117 and the Bronx Occupational Training Center (OTC), where he directed the electrical and woodworking shops. One of his hobbies was woodworking and he delighted in making Judaica for baby namings or decorative purposes. His son and daughter-in-law coined his enterprise, “Jack’s Plaques,” and for a while he was a fixture at local Jewish craft festivals.
A resident of Yonkers, NY for more than 50 years, Jack was active in political, educational and social causes, especially after his retirement when he and Barbara volunteered throughout their greater community. He was particularly devoted to the members of his synagogue, Shaarei Tikvah, in Scarsdale, where he made wooden name plaques for all of the B’nai Mitzvot, and helped out whenever needed, especially when sampling of Oneg Shabbat offerings was required.
Jack was a guileless man with no hidden agendas, a true mensch, who loved people and wanted to greet and talk with everyone. He modeled for his family a sincere desire to treat everyone with equity regardless of race, ethnicity or religious beliefs. He truly had no tolerance for intolerance.
Besides the members of his immediate family, he is survived by nieces and nephews, and grandnieces and grandnephews, as well as an extraordinary group of friends from the very young to the very old who will all miss him and his gentle spirit.
The family wishes to thank all of the people who were so helpful in allowing Jack to live as independently as possible at the Knolls and in Fieldstone. Special mention is reserved for Mayra, who spent the most time with him and was his ‘bubbeleh”, as he was hers.
Condolence(1)-
Pamela Stephens says
January 5, 2019 at 9:06 pmIt is with sadness and regret that I say farewell to my Uncle Jack Weiss. No matter how many years he was with his loving family and community, it was never enough. I regret that I was unable to spend much time with Jack and his family since I live on the West Coast. I always enjoyed his and Bobbi’s phone calls and birthday cards. I still have the shalom plaque he gave me many years ago. I remember how easily Jack related with my husband Dean, talking shop, as Dean was a wood worker too. I remember that in the past Jack and Bobbi both volunteered to provide foot care to seniors in assisted living communities; that still impresses and moves me. I am grateful that Jack had such a very successful life and that he was deeply appreciated by many others outside his family.
Shaarei Tikvah
46 Fox Meadow Road
Scarsdale, NY 10583
https://shaareitikvah.org/donate/