• Chapter One: Background
• Chapter Two: Childhood
• Chapter Three: Family
• Chapter Four: More

Great Grandma: Leah Goldstein
Grandma: Minnie Goldstein
Mother: Millie Scholnick
Father: Irving Scholnick
Sister: Francine Scholnick Feinberg
 

DID THEY EVER TELL YOU STORIES OF WHEN THEY WERE LITTLE?

My mom was born 8-26-15 in New York City and moved to Brooklyn in 1925. The family was very poor, and she was very close to her sister Sarah. She helped clean, shop, and cook with her mother Minnie, who didn’t speak English. She won medals for running and was very good in math. She was also very close to her cousins. She told me that her brother Larry was born on the dining room table at 52 Suffolk Street in New York City.

My father Irving (Augie) was born 4-7-06 in Russia and came to New York City at age six months. He loved to sing, read, and listen to sports and opera on the radio.

ARE YOU LIKE ANY OF YOUR GRANDPARENTS IN ANY WAY?

I never knew Minnie...I was named for her. I think I look like her in a way. I was 2 years old when my grandmother Fannie died. My mother Millie said that she was a very nice, kind lady. My (maternal) grandfather Benjamin ("Benny") could not read or write English, and my (paternal) grandfather loved pretty women.

DO YOU HAVE A FAVORITE GRANDPARENT MEMORY?

My grandpa Benny thought his grandchildren were the best. He kept a photo of his first born grandson Phillip Greenspan on his dresser. He would look at the photo and say "You’ll be the first Jewish President of America!"

TELL ME ABOUT YOUR PARENTS...DO YOU KNOW ANY STORIES ABOUT WHEN THEY WERE YOUNG?

Millie: Born 8-26-15; Died 1-6-89 (Cancer)
Irving: Born 4-7-06; Died 7-18-59 (Heart Failure)

My mother had a hard childhood. They were poor. Her mother Minnie died at age 43, when Millie and her sister Sarah (Sally) were teenagers. Millie had to help raise her brothers Milty (14); Larry (12); Hyman (Hilo), age 10; and George (Joey), age 8. They moved to 1777 Park Place after Minnie died.

Irving was raised on Amboy Street in Brownsville, Brooklyn. His sister Anne told me he had a bad temper. He loved music and wanted to become a drummer. He broke the legs off a kitchen chair to have drumsticks when he was about eight years old.

DO YOU KNOW HOW THEY MET EACH OTHER?

In those years – the 1930’s and 1940’s – all neighborhoods had corner candy stores; they were hangouts for young people. My mother told me she noticed my father because of his handsome looks in 1937. She sent her brother Hilo around to find out who he was. My mother went to the candy store and they met and started to date. They were both attracted to each other’s good looks.

HOW MANY WEDDING ANNIVERSARIES DID THEY CELEBRATE TOGETHER?

They were married for 21 years. (They were married on October 29, 1938 and my father died in July 1959.)

CAN YOU TELL ME SOMETHING SPECIAL YOU REMEMBER ABOUT EACH OF YOUR PARENTS?

My parents were very handsome people. My father took me to parades, parks, and restaurants. He was generous. When I was a small child he would pick me up and let me touch the ceiling. He taught me cute poems. He had beautiful penmanship.

My mother was always cleaning. She fussed with my sister Fran and I; Curled our hair, starched and ironed our clothes, shined our shoes. I think we had the cleanest house and clothes and windows in Brooklyn. I’m sorry she didn’t give us more playtime.

WHO DO YOU RESEMBLE THE MOST?

I think I have their combined looks. Millie’s features and Irving’s light coloring (blond hair/blue eyes). In my adult life I got to look more like my mother (even though she had dark brown eyes and hair.)

DO I RESEMBLE EITHER OF YOUR PARENTS?

I was born 8-18-39 in the Jewish Hospital in Brooklyn. I grew up at 1692 Park Place until 1956, then moved to 1580 St. John’s Place until I got married on 12-28-58.

I was a blond, blue-eyed baby with a round face. I went to P.S. 144, Junior High School 210 and Thomas Jefferson High School (graduated June 1957).

On Park Place I lived in a small three-room apartment. I had a lot of friends who lived in my building. We walked to school together, played games after school – Jacks, checkers, jump rope, riding bikes. I liked to climb fences and trees. I was afraid of cats. I loved to sing and would sing all the time. I dreamed of going to Hollywood and being in a big musical. On Saturdays I would go either to the movies or roller skate or rent a bike. I loved sour pickles and bought one everyday from my weekly allowance (50 cents). I bought movie magazines and song sheets every week.

When I became a teenager I fell in love with baseball (Brooklyn Dodgers – # 4 Duke Snider). During the summer, I went to Ebbets Field or watched the games on television. I wore a jacket that said "Duke Snider" and my friends nicknamed me "Duchess."

I was close to my family. Almost daily I visited my mother’s sister Sally, who lived one block away from us (also on Park Place). There I saw my cousin Michael, my grandfather Benny, who always called me "Fishella" (Little Fish).

My mother liked to take walks in the evening when it was warm. Many nights I went with her and she bought me ice cream. I was also close to my Uncle Joey and Uncle Milty, Aunt Dotty (Milty’s wife), and cousins Melvin and Philip. My sister Francine was very smart in school. She always got higher grades. I got good grades too and I didn’t care if hers were better. I think I played more. But we were very close.

WHAT’S YOUR EARLIEST MEMORY?

I remember things about my apartment on Park Place. I remember my grandma Fanny and going to her house. My mother couldn’t understand this, as I was about two when she died. My sister was named after her.

I remember a summer in Monticello, NY. We stayed in a bungalow on Joyland Road. My father came up on Friday nights and brought Fran and I bubble gum. It was very hard to get as it was during World War II. My parents told us to share the gum with the other children.

I remember my grandpa Benny passing my house on Jewish holiday’s going to Temple. Every year on Yom Kippur he would come in and wish us a happy new year.

TELL ME ABOUT THE OTHER CHILDREN IN YOUR FAMILY
AND HOW YOU GOT ALONG WITH THEM

I had one sister, Francine, who was two-and-a-half years younger than I. I was blond and blue-eyed, and Fran had brown hair and eyes. She was pretty. We always shared a bedroom – up until I got married. We got along well. We had different friends. I think she was more serious than I was. We did have some fights about clothes and I remember not wanting to take her to the movies with me and my mother punishing me by not letting me go.

We both were close to our cousins Michael, Philip and Melvin. We both fought with Michael a lot; He had a bad temper. Cousin Melvin had a fight with Fran and she stuck a pencil in his hand...he grew up with a little scar. However, she always helped him with his schoolwork.

WHAT DID YOUR FAMILY LIKE TO DO TOGETHER?

My father took us to parades and parks. I went to the movies with my mother; we visited my father’s sister Anne on some Sundays in Bensonhurst. My mother never wanted to go but she did. We also visited Aunt Bertha, my mother’s aunt. All the older cousins came to her house...she was like the grandma to the whole family.

WHAT OTHER RELATIVES OF FAMILY FRIENDS HAVE BEEN IMPORTANT TO YOU?
CAN YOU TELL ME THEIR NAMES AND WHY THEY’RE SPECIAL?

My Aunt Sally. I was like the daughter she never had. She let me wear perfume and lipstick. She tweezed my eyebrows for the first time and styled my hair. She made me feel that I was the smartest and prettiest girl in the world and that I should try to fall in love with a millionaire. My childhood friend Adele was very dear to me. She died in 1981 at age 41.

ARE ANY OF OUR RELATIVES KNOWN FOR DOING SOMETHING UNUSUAL?

I remember being told this story: My grandfather Benny was born in Russia; when he was 15 his parents sent him alone to America. An uncle was going to meet him in Boston and his parents were to meet him later on. However, no one met him in Boston, and his parents and family never came. He somehow made his way to New York City.

DO YOU REMEMBER A FAVORITE FAMILY RECIPE?

My mother was a good cook. She made the best chopped liver. She told me her secret was chicken livers. She boiled them first to "clean them out." Then she would sauté them with tons of onions, oil and seasonings and then grind all this with hard-boiled eggs. Everyone loved "Millie’s Chopped Liver." She also made delicious soups and gefilte fish. Aunt Sally made great roasted chickens and Italian food. She always made "Spicy food."

WHO IS THE OLDEST RELATIVE YOU EVER MET?
DID THEY TELL YOU ANY INTERESTING STORIES ABOUT OUR FAMILY?

My father’s sister Anne is still alive (NOTE: as of 2/93). She is 89 years old. She told me that she remembered the boat ride from Russia. Her mother was sick on the boat. She told me that when my grandmother was pregnant with my father she sat on ice near a river while washing clothes. She went into labor and my father was born blue. He was worked on for hours and not expected to live. Thank God he did.

DID YOU EVER GET INTO TROUBLE FOR DOING SOMETHING YOU
WERE NOT SUPPOSED TO? WHAT WAS IT? HOW OLD WERE YOU?

Yes – I remember stealing an apple from my neighbor. She went shopping and when she came home I was sitting on our stoop. She asked me to watch her bags and I took an apple and put it in my pocket. Another neighbor saw this from her window and told my mother, who punished me. I couldn’t go to the movies that weekend. I guess I was about eight years old.

WHAT WAS ONE OF YOUR GREATEST ADVENTURES WHEN YOU WERE SMALL?

My Aunt Sally’s husband Moish had a drinking problem. He either had money, which he spent freely, or was drunk and broke. One Saturday he won a lot of money at the racetrack. He took my cousin Michael (his son), Francine and I to Radio City Music Hall. We went to New York City from Brooklyn in a taxi. He went to a delicatessen and bought pastrami, corned beef, pickles and soda and we ate it in the movies. Afterwards we went to get ice cream, sodas and toys and then went home in a taxi.

WHAT WAS ONE OF THE FUNNIEST THINGS THAT EVER HAPPENED TO YOU WHEN YOU WERE YOUNG?

When I was young I loved to act. I would lock myself in the bathroom and play act, looking in the mirror. My father’s friend was a barber and would lend him hair trimmers and all sorts of clippers. I would experiment with them. One day I stood in front of the mirror pretending to be shaving my eyebrow. I ran the shaver over it lightly and it shaved off the brow. My mother was furious. She had to pencil in one eyebrow until it grew back.

WHAT WERE YOUR DREAMS FOR THE FUTURE WHEN YOU WERE A TEENAGER?

I dreamed of being a baseball player’s wife. I remember looking at Duke Snider’s wife with envy when I was 13 years old. Again my dream was to be an actress and live in a big house in Beverly Hills. I wanted my whole family to move to sunny California.

DID YOU HAVE A "CRUSH" ON ANYONE IN HIGH SCHOOL?
WHAT DID YOU LIKE ABOUT THAT PERSON?

I had a big crush on Harvey Salz. He was the captain of the basketball team. He was tall, blonde, and very cute. I remember him being shy. I guess I liked his popularity and sports talent. He went to college in North Carolina. I wrote to him, but he ended up marrying a girl from college.

WHO WERE YOU BEST FRIENDS WITH GROWING UP?
WHAT DID YOU DO TOGETHER?

I met Grandpa Joe in April of 1958. I was working for a lingerie company (Chevette – 135 Madison Avenue, New York City.) I was a receptionist, I did the payroll, and would model some garments in the showroom. I was 18 years old when I was hired. It was my first full-time job in New York City. I started with a salary of $55.00 per week. I worked there until March 1960 and left there two weeks before I gave birth to Ilene (your mother).

I met Grandpa when he came to my office to try to sell nylon tricot for J.P. Stevens. I liked his looks right away. We spoke briefly and then he went into the factory area. I didn’t see him leave, but about an hour later he called me and joked that he didn’t say goodbye. I knew then he liked me too. I saw him again and again and finally at the end of May 1958 he asked me out to lunch. I knew I liked Grandpa.

WHEN DID YOU FIRST KNOW YOU WANTED TO MARRY?

Right away. I told him how I felt in June and July. He was very surprised it was so soon and he said maybe I wasn’t sure. In July 1958 I went to Nantucket Island for a two-week vacation alone. Grandpa missed me a lot. He couldn’t wait for me to come home. I came home in August and we continued dating.

We became engaged in September 1958 in the Bronx. Grandpa gave me a diamond ring. We were engaged for three-and-a-half months and got married on December 28, 1958.

WHAT WAS YOUR WEDDING LIKE?
DID YOU GO SOMEPLACE SPECIAL ON A HONEYMOON?

We had a small wedding at Temple Beth Jacob on Buffalo Avenue in Brooklyn. It was a Sunday night. My sister was the Maid of Honor; Grandpa’s brother Murray was the Best Man. It was partly sad for me as my father (your great-grandfather Irving) was not at the wedding. He was sick and in the hospital.

It was a lively, happy wedding. I wore a beautiful borrowed gown and pearls that my Uncle Larry sent me from Japan in 1951. Your mother wore these pearls at her wedding.

We went to Washington, D.C. on our honeymoon.

WHAT SURPRISED YOU MOST ABOUT YOUR NEW SPOUSE AFTER YOU WERE MARRIED?

He was very organized and prompt. He whistled all the time. He wanted ketchup on spaghetti instead of sauce. He was afraid of heights and wouldn’t fly until the early 1970’s.

I WONDER WHAT YOUR FIRST YEARS TOGETHER WERE LIKE

Very happy. I worked full time up until three weeks before your mom was born on March 30, 1960. We had lots of friends and went to the movies, shows, and dinners with them. On weekends we went to visit our parents. We invited friends to our home at 6801 21st Avenue in Bensonhurst, Brooklyn.

HOW MANY CHILDREN DID YOU WANT?

Three – and we had three. When I was young I said I wanted nine children. After three I realized that was enough for me.

Ilene Jane: 3/30/60 – 5 lbs. 11 oz.
Bruce: 11/29/62 – 6 lbs. 9 oz.
Steven Jory: 7/29/64 – 6 lbs. 9 oz.

I don’t know why Bruce was not given a middle name.

WHAT DID YOU THINK THE DAY MY PARENT WAS BORN?

Ilene was our first child. She was born on a Wednesday at 10:30 p.m. at the Brooklyn Woman’s Hospital (Lincoln Place and Ralph Avenue). We were all very excited. My mother Millie became a grandma at age 44, and my sister Fran was so happy to have a niece.

HOW DID YOU CHOOSE MY PARENT’S NAME?

Ilene Jane was named after my father Irving and her paternal grandfather Jacob. Her Hebrew name is Yetta Leah.

DID MY PARENT REMIND YOU OF ANYONE ELSE IN YOUR FAMILY?

Unlike some children, who from the moment of birth look like someone, Ilene did not. As she got older I always thought she looked more like Grandpa Joe. Now as an adult many people think she looks like me. I’m happy to hear that, as I think she’s beautiful.

WHAT WAS MY PARENT LIKE AS A CHILD?

Ilene was blessed with a wonderful, adorable personality. She was pretty, funny, playful and smart. She loved to sing and dance and was always happy. Loved Barbie dolls. She was very neat and clean. She also could get into trouble. She was very kind to Bruce and Steven.

WHAT’S ONE OF THE MOST MISCHIEVOUS THINGS MY PARENT EVER DID?

When Uncle Bruce was an infant I gave him a bath in the big tub. I was on my knees holding him. From behind me your mom (who was two and three-quarter years old) spilled a box of soapsuds on Uncle Bruce. It went into his eyes and mouth. I was very mad and nervous that this would harm him. She said she wanted him to be clean.

WHAT ABOUT MY PARENT MADE YOU ESPECIALLY PROUD?

Ilene was always very sweet. I was proud that she got along with people. She did well in school. When she was about eight years old she wore special shoes, which were connected by a steel bar, at night to correct her feet. She was very patient and really didn’t complain. Also she was very good about wearing braces. I was especially proud when she gave birth to Barbara and Michelle and showed that she was an excellent mother.

TELL ME ABOUT YOUR CHILDREN WHEN THEY WERE YOUNG

I realize it was wise to have my children close in age. It was hard work but I never had regrets.

WHAT KINDS OF THINGS DID YOU ALL LIKE TO DO TOGETHER?

We played games... for example I dressed Ilene in costumes. She sang and danced. She loved her Barbie doll and clothes. Also hand painting, building blocks and puzzles.

Bruce loved doctor kits and books about animals and insects. He always wanted to cut up bugs to learn about them.

Steven was a little actor. He was always performing, making faces, and he loved to read books and be read to.

The kids had bikes and skates and played well with other children. The apartment building we lived in (6801 21st Avenue) had many children about the same ages. They would come to our apartment to play games and would also play outside the building. It was a busy time and we all had a lot of fun.

We spent many weekends driving to New Haven, Connecticut to visit the Connecticut Brodoff’s. It was fun for both families. We also went to Central Park, Prospect Park, Coney Island, Nelly Bly Amusement Park and, of course to Kan Acres Bungalow Colony in South Fallsburg, N.Y. with Joan, Arnold, Stephanie and Lewis Godlis and Adele, Mel, Ira and Howie Krigsman.

AS A TEENAGER, WHAT DID MY PARENT DO THAT WORRIED YOU THE MOST?

In thinking back I’m sorry to say that I worried too much about too many things. I worried about the exposure to drugs. Even though it was always discussed in our home, a parent worries about a child being tempted to experience what other teenagers are doing. Even starting to smoke cigarettes was something I never wanted my children to do. Driving was a big worry and we hoped our children were careful.

DID MY PARENT HAVE ANY SPECIAL INTERESTS OR ACHIEVEMENTS AS A TEENAGER?

Ilene was a Little League cheerleader, she was in school plays, she loved to sing, swim, dance. She was on the Brooklyn College swimming team. She also liked to go bowling.

Ilene loved Donny Osmond when she was an early teenager (or even younger) and wanted to grow up and marry him (Ha Ha!)

Ilene worked in Coney Island Hospital as a candy stripper in her early teens. She was always very kindhearted to others.

WHEN IT WAS TIME FOR MY PARENT TO MOVE OUT AND LEAVE HOME, HOW DID YOU FEEL?

We were happy, as Ilene was going to attend Downstate Nursing School in Brooklyn, N.Y., a short ride from home in Sheepshead Bay. We saw her often, either visiting her at school or she would come home on some weekends. This lasted for two years. She shared an apartment at school with other nursing students and I think this was a happy time in her life.

WHEN DID YOU FIRST MEET MY PARENT’S SPOUSE?
HOW DID YOU FEEL WHEN THEY DECIDED TO MARRY?

We met your dad for the first time when he came to our apartment on Shore Parkway to pick up your mom for a date. They dated for a couple of years, became engaged, and when they decided to marry we were very happy.

WHAT WAS THEIR WEDDING LIKE?
DO YOU HAVE A FAVORITE MEMORY OF THEIR WEDDING DAY?

Their wedding took place at the Manhattan Beach Jewish Center on April 10, 1983. It was a big, beautiful celebration, approximately 270 people. It was a thrill to walk your mom to the altar to marry your dad.

NOW, TELL ME WHAT YOU THOUGHT WHEN YOU FIRST SAW ME!

Your birth was an experience for me that will last a lifetime. I was lucky enough to bedside at Yale New Haven Hospital when you were born. I was visiting mom in Hamden, Connecticut the day before you were born. That night, while eating in a restaurant with your mom and dad, mom started labor. It lasted through the night and we went to the hospital about 8 a.m. on January 15, 1986. What a thrill it was after being with mom and dad in the birthing room for a couple of hours to then watch you enter the world.

I watched every inch of you - from the top of your head to your toes – come from my daughter’s body. My heart was pounding and I couldn’t be happier. You were tiny, pink and beautiful. I will never forget that sight.

Grandma Marilyn was born in Brooklyn...I like Brooklyn, it’s an interesting place. I also love Southern California and Cape Cod, Massachusetts.

WHAT COUNTRIES DID YOUR FAMILIES ORIGINALLY COME FROM?

My maternal and paternal grandparents came from Russia.

DO YOU KNOW WHEN AND WHY THEY MOVED HERE?

Most Jewish families in Russia in the late 1800’s left because of anti-Semitism. They came to America for a better financial life and to be able to have religious freedom.

DID THEY BRING ANY TRADITIONS WITH THEM?

They remained very close to family. My grandfather went to the Temple, they cooked traditional meals, and lit Sabbath candles. My Grandmother Minnie only spoke Yiddish.

WHERE AND WHEN WERE YOU BORN?
WHERE DID YOU LIVE WHEN YOU WERE GROWING UP?

Grandma Marilyn (Scholnick) was born August 18, 1939 in Brooklyn, N.Y. at the Jewish Hospital; I believe it was on Prospect Place and Franklin Avenue. From birth until age 16 I lived at 1692 Park Place between Ralph and Howard Avenues. We then moved a few blocks to 1580 St. John’s Place, off Buffalo Avenue. It was a two family house that was shared by my Uncle Milty, Aunt Dotty, Philip and Melvin Greenspan. Uncle Milty owned the house. I lived there until December 28, 1958 – when I married Grandpa Joe and moved to 6801 21st Avenue.

TELL ME ABOUT THE FAMILY HOME YOU REMEMBER MOST

I remember all places vividly. Park Place was a small three-room apartment in a three-story walk-up building. St. John’s Place was a six-room flat facing a busy street, opposite the Congress movie theater and Unity Hospital.

WHAT WAS YOUR ROOM LIKE?
DID YOU HAVE TO SHARE IT?

I always shared a bedroom with my sister Francine. We had two small chests with a wall closet. I always had pictures of movie stars and singers and dancers in my room. Francine and I were neat. My mother (your great-grandma "GG" Millie) made us clean our room and keep our clothes and books neat.

DID YOU HAVE A SPECIAL PLACE YOU LIKED TO GO WHEN YOU WERE A CHILD?

I loved to go to the movies..that was my favorite place. I also liked roller-skating in an indoor rink. In my early teens I went to Ebbets Field to watch the Brooklyn Dodgers (a baseball team). My favorite player was the centerfielder Duke Snider (#4). I became the President of his fan club and at times baby sat for his children.

WAS THERE ANY PLACE THAT WAS SCARY?

I can’t remember a scary place. Some movies were scary and I would have a nightmare from that. I can only remember that when my friends and I went to the beach (Brighton Beach) I was afraid to go over my head in the ocean. And I was afraid of cats.

WHERE DID YOU GO TO SCHOOL?

P.S. 144 ( Prospect Place and Howard Avenue) from Kindergarten to 6th grade.
John Marshall Junior High School (#210) – Park Place.
Thomas Jefferson High School – Pennsylvania Avenue and Dumont Avenue.

DID YOU LIKE SCHOOL?

Yes, very much. I always liked geography and history. Especially studying maps of the U.S.A. and the world.

WHICH SUBJECT WAS YOUR FAVORITE?

History and geography. I also liked my penmanship class.

WHAT SCHOOL ACTIVITIES DID YOU ENJOY?

In public school I liked art classes, music, cooking, basketball, gym exercises, class trips to museums, Chinatown, parks.

I liked jumping rope with my friends in the schoolyard. I also liked to climb...my friends and I would climb trees and fences in my backyard.

DID YOU HAVE A PART-TIME JOB? WHERE?
HOW MUCH MONEY DID YOU MAKE?

I baby-sat and made 50 cents per hour. I worked part-time for Par Motors (they repaired cars). I answered the phone, made appointments and took cash. I made 75 cents an hour.

I also worked for a company that collected money from people who bought furniture on time payments. I sent out the bills for $1.00 per hour.

WHERE DID YOU SPEND HOLIDAYS AND OTHER VACATIONS?

As a small child (about 8 years old) I went to Camp Sussex in New Jersey for three weeks during the summer. I was very homesick. My parents also had a bungalow in Monticello when I was a child. Most of the time I was home and played with my friends.

WHAT KINDS OF ENTERTAINMENT DID YOU ENJOY?

I loved going to parades with my father. I was very happy when my family got a television set. I went to the movies often. As a child I remember enjoying reading the Daily News and Daily Mirror newspapers. They cost 2 cents apiece. I also played a lot of games with my friends.

WHERE DID YOU MOVE WHEN YOU LEFT YOUR FAMILY’S HOME?
HOW OLD WERE YOU THEN?

I moved from 1580 St. Johns Place (between Buffalo and Rochester Avenues) in December 1958 when I got married to Grandpa Joe. We moved to 6801 21st Avenue in Bensonhurst, Brooklyn.

I was 19 years and 4 months of age.

WHERE WAS YOUR FIRST FULL-TIME JOB?

Chevette, Inc. 135 Madison Avenue in New York City. The company manufactured ladies lingerie. I began in August 1957 and left in March 1960 when I gave birth to your mom, Ilene Jane, on March 30, 1960.

WHERE ELSE HAVE YOU WORKED?

Over the years I have had many jobs in all different fields. After I married and gave birth to Ilene, Bruce and Steven I stayed home raising a family until September 1972. Then I worked in Kings Bay Pharmacy (Nostrand Avenue, Brooklyn) until June 1978. Then for Dr. Fleisher, a dentist on Avenue M., until 1980. From September 1982 until May 1986 I worked for Herbert Bedell, a lawyer at 26 Broadway, and then for the United Artists Movie Theater company when they were constructing a movie complex in Sheepshead Bay, right across the street from my house.

In 1994 I did some volunteer work for NYC (The Mayor’s Office of Film, Theater and Broadcasting) and then was hired for Mayor Giuliani’s Office of Special Projects. Now as of June 1997 I am working in special events for the Audrey Hepburn Children’s Fund.

WHERE WAS YOUR FIRST HOME AFTER YOU MARRIED?
WHAT WAS IT LIKE?

6801 21st Avenue in Brooklyn (between Bay Parkway and 21st Avenue). It was a small one-bedroom apartment on the lobby floor of an apartment house. That’s where we met Joan and Arnold Godlis. When Ilene was born we put her crib in our bedroom. It was a very nice first place to live. We had wonderful neighbors; all young families with lots of kids in the building. It was a convenient neighborhood to shop for food, clothes, toys, books, etc. The subway was close by, also buses.

DID YOU RAISE YOUR FAMILY THERE?

Yes. Ilene was born March 30, 1960, Bruce was born on November 29, 1962, and Steven was born on July 29, 1964.

We lived at 6801 21st Avenue during that time, and Ilene attended kindergarten at P.S. 205 on 20th Avenue.

My friend Adele Krigsman lived on Stillwell Avenue, within walking distance, and we saw each other very often. Her sons were Ira and Howard and we spent a lot of time together with her sons and my kids. It was a very busy, happy time in my life.

We moved to 3855 Shore Parkway in Sheepshead Bay, Brooklyn on June 27, 1966.

TELL ME ABOUT THE PLACES YOU VISITED.

A lot of the East Coast.... Maine; New Hampshire; Vermont; Rhode Island; Boston, Cape Cod, Martha’s Vineyard and Nantucket in Massachusetts; Connecticut; Pennsylvania; New Jersey; Upstate New York; Washington, D.C.; Virginia; Delaware; Virginia; Hilton Head Island, North Carolina; Charleston, South Carolina; Savannah, Georgia; and Florida. I also visited Kansas; Missouri; Texas; Nevada; Arizona; California; Mexico; England; France; Italy; and Canada (Montreal, Quebec, Toronto).

IF YOU COULD GO SOMEPLACE YOU HAVEN’T BEEN, WHERE WOULD IT BE AND WHY?

Israel – to see the development of the country.

WHERE IS YOUR FAVORITE PLACE OF ALL AND WHY?

I love the Southwestern part of the United States, particularly California...I also love New York, and Italy was a fabulous trip; the country was beautiful.

Actually, I really loved just about everyplace I ever visited. I can’t forget the Isle of Capri...that was a special place.

WHERE WERE YOU WHEN I WAS BORN?

When Barbara was born I was lucky to be in the birthing room at Yale New Haven Hospital (in New Haven, Connecticut) and viewed her birth. It was awesome! I’ll never forget that sight as long as I live...I even photographed her birth...

When Michelle was born Grandpa Joe and I were in Orange, Connecticut at Uncle Murray’s house. We got a call from Ilene at 8:30 a.m. Sunday November 26, 1989, giving us the great news that we have another granddaughter. We were thrilled!

We quickly dressed and hurried to New Jersey to meet out new addition and see Ilene, Lou, and Barbara.

Michelle Fran was named for her maternal great-grandmother Millie (my mother), and Francine, her great-aunt and my sister.

Millie was born in Manhattan on August 26, 1915 and died of cancer at age 73 ½ years on January 6, 1989.

Millie was the daughter of Minnie Goldstein Greenspan and Benjamin Greenspan, both born in Russia. Minnie was born in 1890 and died April 4, 1934 (44 years of age). She went into a diabetic coma at home with her six (surviving) children. (NOTE: She previously had seven other children that didn’t survive infancy) and passed away by morning.

Her children were:

1) Sarah, born December 13, 1913. Sarah was the wife of Morris Elman and mother of my cousin Michael, who was born January 6, 1945.

2) Millie, who married Irving Scholnick (my father) on October 29, 1938 in Brooklyn, New York. Their children were Marilyn, born August 18, 1939 at the Brooklyn Jewish Hospital on Prospect Place. Francine was born April 9, 1942 and died April 27, 1982 in New York Hospital (cause of death was breast cancer).

3) Isadore Milton Greenspan, eldest of four sons. Milty, as he was known, was born May, 1917 and died December 1970 of a heart attack. Milty married Dorothy Kaplan and had two sons, Philip and Melvin.