Nu! How was the Dec 23rd event at the Bridge Club?
We know you're asking. Here are a few factoids.
We gathered a group of (roughly) 50 people at the bridge club. Besides the immediate family, guests included 2 grandchildren of Mort's brother Arnold (Adam Beechen and his wife Mindy, and Uri Allen), 1 of Mort's sister Miriam's children (Jennifer Zvi) with her two children (Miles and Amy), many members of the Zeidler clan, Judy Lopez (Sue's caregiver for the last 18 months), and lots of other friends of Sue's, or of her kids.
Among the other guests were about 10 bridge players who stayed on following the Sunday afternoon game. We think it's great to note that among those friends are
several whom Sue met in the past 25 years of living in LA and playing regularly at the Beverly Hills club (e.g., Rhonda Platt, Bill Weingarten)
at least one whom Sue knew from prior lives in LA (e.g., Susan Lindenbaum's cousin was our neighbor in the early 1960s)
one couple who played bridge in Zimbabwe with Sue & Mort, before emigrating to LA where their adult children and grandchildren live (Nellie & Colin Gordon)
Five or more people wore handknits by Sue: including Michael's oversized (!) maroon pullover that illustrates not every sweater is a raging success; Rhonda's vest that illustrates Sue's ability to rework a sweater that no longer fits into something that does (including the leftovers from the original); several attractive scarves; Janet's long black skirt; Ariella's green pullover.
Leo, Michael and Nancy said a few words, some more prepared and some more spontaneous. We may get full versions of the text of (e.g.) Leo's remarks to add here later.
We ate (egg salad, herring salad, lox/cream cheese, whitefish salad, chopped liver, eggplant salad, rye & pumperknickle bread, gefilte fish, pickles, crackers, grapes, bakery cookies), and drank (only soft drinks, given that this space is part of a public park), though we all acknowledge that alcohol - scotch, especially - and home baked goodies, would have been more true to Sue.
The aforementioned Bill W. gave an extended remembrance on behalf of himself and Rhonda, who preferred not to speak, using Sue's "key word" as a cue to the many topics he touched on. The 2 older granddaughters interlaced an original piece by Janet with Ariella's interpretive reading of Sue's 1941-2 diary, the teenage years, which helps explain the content: largely about boys, her girlfriends, and top couples of the month. (Watch this space for a possible contribution by Melina.)
While we intended to fill time reading from the many cards and notes we received from people at a distance, we had an abundance of contributions from those present. The photo board was seeded with a couple photos we received from Lloyd Hubbard (coming here shortly), and joined by a few photos and clippings that guests brought along (thanks, Jennifer and Terry, and Linda and David). (We'll continue to post the notes we've received intended for a wider audience here.) Cantor Janis Gurlanick sang "I've Gotta Be Me," and led the group in a rousing "Hava Nagilah." Dave Verner, a colleague of Mort's from IBM, now living in Chicago, gave us a final sendoff.
We bought too many Werther's butterscotch candies and neglected to serve them.
With many thanks to Barbara LeMaster (of CSULB), we caught much of the festivities on video. We'll let you know when a brief, edited version is available.
