With love to you — Helen Shulman
April 7, 1922 – February 19, 2022
Here’s to you Mother — daughter, wife, mother, aunt, grandmother and great grandmother. Helen Shulman was almost at her 100th year … her life spanned a century. Your stature and natural beauty was always about perfection, not bigger than life. And always by her side our father Abraham, her loving & caring husband.
Dying on a Saturday is saved for people who are righteous. Doing the right thing. Caring about others. Yes, Mother was a ‘peacemaker.’ We could tell her life story of a thousand vignettes from decades beyond imagination. How she set her course along with her husband’s dreams, how they made their fortune, raised their family — with dedication.
Mother didn’t possess any amazing talent but she did talk about doing a piano concert while in her teens, although she never played the piano one day during her years with us. We all knew one fact — that moving and owning many homes was Mom’s style — Buying new houses, changes of address always brought US a smile. As we updated our address books, one thing remained constant — new homes were always with your touch, always happy, never a fear.
Mom’s early Brooklyn life from 1922 through her marriage to Dad (secretly) in 1939 was her legacy. She cherished her Aunt Elsie and Uncle Ned Nelson who became her guardian angels after her father died at a very early age. She loved her beautiful mother Bessie and older sister Geraldine! But it was THAT summer in the Catskill Mountains that changed the course of her entire life — meeting Abe during the summer of 1938.
Their early years together in Long Branch, NJ found them welcoming two children Leigh & Bruce. They became an important couple in the shore town’s center of sociability. These were the young years when Mother loved knitting her children sweaters, creating hand-made afghans, cooking from a ‘readers digest’ cookbook and nurturing her family from the small red Hadassah Holiday Cookbook. She was the dentist’s devoted wife and she loved it.
From home to home, town to town, New Jersey to Florida and back, they had wanderlust — never thinking twice about making decisions together to pick up and move! Mother supported Dad in his dental and orthodontic practices, keeping an eye on him AND the business. By the 1970s they retired; for 30+ beautiful years they lived the life of riley — finding big band music and places to dance. Mom’s expectations were simple — making dad happy, traveling through Doc’s Tours and ALWAYS taking a chance.
They traveled the world, lived on a kibbutz in Israel, survived years in Las Vegas, played tennis from Florida to Vegas. As they trekked her favorite stories were how they met — falling in love, a secret wedding and onward.
Today’s technology was never Mom’s thing — until after Dad’s passing when she realized that the mainline to her family was her flip cellphone. Her technical consultant was her loving granddaughter Sue. And her interior design consultant — grandson Dave!
Mom’s memory was keen; even a week before she passed — she was still the family historian that we could call to connect the dots.
How will we remember our Mother? There isn’t a book big enough to share our memories and love. The final years were the most difficult when being alone was her life. Every day she prayed to be with Dad, although I knew we couldn’t part with her yet. We will think of you every day, look up in heaven and chuckle about the little things that made you happy — Jay and I will always keep a bowl of jelly beans and oreo cookies within arm’s length. Now you’re at a table in Heaven; so save me a seat Momma and please share your plate of shrimp lo mein!
This week by your bedside on your long journey to heaven, You quietly and calmly passed into heaven just like Dad did — with peace and dignity. We are so proud of you!
Daughter Leigh Cort — Son Bruce Shulman — Son-in-Law Jay Greene — Granddaughter Susan Lomba — Grandson David Lomba — Granddaughter Parker Shulman — Great Grandson Zack Serebin
