Yair “Jerry” Eisenberg

Yair “Jerry” Eisenberg passed away at Stanford University Medical Center on May 27, 2012, of complications from heart disease. Yair is survived by daughters Beth Pennay of Fremont, California and Rebecca Eisenberg of Ann Arbor, Michigan, sons-in-law Robert Pennay and Judah Garber, grandsons Solomon Garber and Jacob Garber, step-grandsons Anthony Pennay and Christopher Pennay, and Shlomit Eisenberg Barzilai and Shai Eisenberg, both of Tel Aviv, the children of his recently deceased brother Amnon Eisenberg.

Born on August 19, 1928 in Jerusalem, Israel, Yair led an exciting life. He was a proud son of the State of Israel. His parents, Shlomo and Yafa Eisenberg, came to Jerusalem from Poland to build a Jewish state. Shlomo was general secretary of the Jewish Agency in Jerusalem during Yair’s childhood, and their home was a gathering place for visiting dignitaries and philanthropists who joined the causes of providing a homeland for the Jewish people and rescuing Jews during and after World War II.

After graduating from the Gymnasia Rehavia in Jerusalem in 1946, Yair spent a year of full-time military service. Formally he served in the British Palestine Frontier force, but his allegiance was to the Palmach, which was then still an underground military organization dedicated to establishing the State of Israel. He traveled to the United States to begin his college education at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in the fall of 1947. He had to take his freshman year final exams early because he was called back home for the War of Independence. Yair fought bravely and narrowly avoided death in the battle of Beit Hanoun, Operation Ten Plagues. He stayed in Israel to continue his engineering studies at Haifa Technion for two years before returning to MIT, where he completed his BS in civil engineering in 1952.

During his senior year at MIT, Yair met his future wife, Marjorie Bragdon. They were married in October 1952 and thereafter settled in Reading, Massachusetts with their two daughters. In 1962, they moved to the Palo Alto area, where Yair resided for 50 years.

Yair had an illustrious career as a civil engineer designing major public works, including over 40 years with the consulting engineering firm of Parsons, Brinckerhoff, Quade and Douglas. Among his many accomplishments, he designed underground stations for rapid transit systems throughout the United States. He played a central role in the design of the Bay Area Rapid Transit system from inception to completion. He was an expert in the design of underground structures in seismically active regions. In addition to rapid transit systems, he designed tunnels and sewage outfall projects throughout the world.

Yair was an avid traveler who continued exploring the world with Marjorie in retirement. He spoke multiple languages and loved to address people in their native language, even if he knew only a few words. He was an excellent photographer who leaves behind a rich photographic archive of scenic places, exotic animals, and friends from around the world. He was also an avid reader with passionate interests in history and politics. He enjoyed engaging his friends in lively discussions of world affairs.

After the death of Marjorie in 2007, Yair became involved in many activities at the Jewish Community Center in Palo Alto. He also regularly attended Torah study at Temple Beth Am, Current Events at Little House in Menlo Park, and weekly forums of the Humanist Community of Silicon Valley. He formed many close friendships and had an active social and intellectual life until the end.

His sweetness, generosity, intelligence, and sense of humor touched many lives, and his memory is a blessing to his family and to the many people who loved him.

A memorial service is scheduled for Sunday, June 10 at 2 p.m. in the Freidenrich Conference Center, 4th Floor, Jewish Community Center, 3921 Fabian Way, Palo Alto, California. Donations can be made in his name to the American Heart Association, the American Jewish World Service, or the Oshman Family Jewish Community Center.

Audrey Joan Misrack

A native and lifelong resident of San Francisco, Audrey passed away peacefully at home on May 17, 2012 at age 88. She was the daughter of Frank and Florence Berman and sister of the late Frank Berman, Jr. Audrey was a graduate of George Washington High School and was happily married for 52 years to the late Dr. Maury L. Misrack. She was a devoted and beloved mother, grandmother, and great-grandmother.

Audrey loved travel and football, especially the San Francisco 49ers and the Cal Bears. She spent many decades enjoying these activities with her husband and family. In addition, Audrey was an active member of the Congregation Emanu-El Sisterhood Board and a longtime volunteer for Mount Zion Hospital in the Orthopedic Clinic.

Audrey is survived by her children, Marilee Fenn (Arthur), Linda O’Connor (John), and Terri Klein; by her grandchildren, John, Scott (Tara), Sarah, Lisa (Jeff), Adam, and Rachel; and by her great granddaughter, Juliette.

Private services were held. Donations may be made in her memory to either the Elizabeth S. & Alvin I. Fine Museum Fund of Congregation Emanu-El or to the San Francisco Food Bank.

Marilyn Weisberg

In San Francisco at age 79. Marilyn was born in Omaha, Nebraska, to Max and Esther Kaplan. Marilyn received her B.A. from Northwestern University. In June 1955, she married Raymond Weisberg and moved to San Francisco. She was active in many organizations and in Democratic politics. She served as the President of the Jewish Family and Children’s Services Agency, and on the San Francisco Library Commission. At the time of her death, she was serving on the board of the San Francisco chapter of the New Israel Fund.

Marilyn is survived by her husband, Raymond, her children, Dvora Weisberg and Neal Scheindlin and Adam Weisberg and Rachel Brodie, and her grandchildren, Micah, Noah, Sophia and Ariella. She was predeceased by her parents and her three siblings.

Services were held Friday, June 1, 2012. Contributions in Marilyn’s memory may be made to the New Israel Fund, Mazon, or the Hebrew Union College, Los Angeles.

Sinai Memorial Chapel

Louis Zamvil

Louis Zamvil, M.D., of Palo Alto, passed away peacefully at his home on May 29th at the age of 89. Louis was born to Orthodox Jewish parents in Brooklyn on February 21, 1923. He spent his childhood in New York, where he met his future wife, Stella Savage. After completion of high school, he attended City College of New York.

During World War II, he was drafted into the Army and sent to Stanford, where he completed his Bachelor of Arts degree, Phi Beta Kappa. While Louis intended to become an engineer, his superior officer instructed him to take the medical school entrance exam. Alphabetically, he was then assigned to medical school at the University of Oregon, and graduated Alpha Omega Alpha in 1949.

His residency training in Pediatrics at Stanford was interrupted from 1951-1953 when he served in the Army as a Captain and physician in Korea. There he started an orphanage.

After discharge, he completed his residency at Stanford and entered pediatric practice in Palo Alto. He was Clinical Professor of Pediatrics at Stanford, teaching residents and medical students on the hospital ward service until his retirement in 2003. He was recognized by Stanford physicians and the medical community in the Bay Area for his excellent diagnostic skills and sound clinical judgment. His patients appreciated his willingness to make house calls at any time he was needed — day or night.

Louis was a Leader in the Jewish Community, where he co-founded Congregations Beth Am and Kol Emeth and served as President of the Jewish Community Center. He is survived by his wife of sixty-eight years, three children, Kenneth of Penngrove, CA, Linda of Stowe, VT and Scott of Palo Alto, eight grandchildren and eight great-grandchildren. Donations can be made in his memory to Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital at Stanford, CA.

Sinai Memorial Chapel