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Zane Kaplan

1926–2017

Zane Kaplan, longtime owner and operator of Kaplan’s Surplus & Sporting Goods — a San Francisco institution for 75 years — died of natural causes on Nov. 9. He was 91 and had been living in retirement since the closing of his business in 2014. Until that time — he was then 88 — he worked six days a week at the store, year in and year out, in good health and otherwise.

“I woke up feeling so sick one morning I couldn’t get out of bed,” he once recalled. “So I took an aspirin, and an hour later I drove downtown and opened the store.”

The son of Jewish immigrants, Ben and Mollie Kaplan, Zane was born in Cleveland, Ohio, a quintessential child of the Depression — a tenement home life, a father without work. It was this same father, traveling alone, who struck out west and founded Kaplan’s; the year was 1939. That same year, mother and son, and Zane’s two sisters, Claire and Estelle, joined the father in San Francisco, settling in the Richmond District.

Zane was crazy for baseball in his youth and garnered some interest from professional scouts, but at 17 he threw out his arm while pitching for local Washington High, and that effectively ended his dream of pitching in the major leagues one day. Following high school he served in the Army, mourned the death of his sister Claire, and pursued a degree (never realized) in physical education. Around this time he also pursued a Lowell student, Rhoda Chrisman — if not literally the girl next door, the girl directly across the street. They married in their 20s, raised three children, and were loving mates for seven decades.

The start of his marriage also marked the start of Zane’s career at Kaplan’s, whose period of greatest efflorescence was the late ’60s and early ’70s, when the Market Street store was the Love Generation’s place to go for must-have items — Buck knives, Frye boots, Seafarer dungarees, Coleman stoves and lanterns, Schott Bros. leather jackets and peacoats, down bags and pup tents, foam rubber cut to order, all things Ben Davis and all things Levi.

About his line of Levi jeans, which Zane priced low, he liked to say, in his reflective way, “No matter how bad business gets, I know I’m always going to sell at least one pair of Levi’s.”

Zane is survived by his wife, Rhoda; a daughter, Cathy Abrams, and sons Howard and Lance; five grandchildren — Lonny, Paige, Mickey, Maddie, and Will; a nephew, Steve Berman, and a niece, Sharon Munowitch; a former son-in-law, Ira Abrams, and the wives of his sons, Karen Kaplan and Jessica van Campen. With only one or two exceptions, all these kin at one time or another were marshaled into service at Kaplan’s.

Donations in Zane’s memory may be made to Mission Hospice, 1670 S. Amphlett Blvd., Suite 300, San Mateo, CA 94402 and SF Lodge No. 21, B’nai B’rith, 1185 Vicente St., San Francisco, CA 94116.

Interred at Eternal Home Cemetery, Colma.

(Sinai SF)

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Isaac Klughaupt passed away on Nov. 23, 2017 at the age of 47. Isaac was born on May 10, 1970 in San Francisco. He grew up in Los Altos Hills and died of metastatic melanoma at his home in Mountain View. Isaac was the son of Naomi and Martin Klughaupt, brother of Miriam Klughaupt, husband of Annette Klughaupt, stepfather of Keilani and Jacob Gaming, and father of 13-year-old daughter Ilana.

Isaac attended South Peninsula Hebrew Day School and Pinewood High School. He received a BA in Biology and Chemistry from Notre Dame de Namur University and was employed as a computer technician specializing in hardware repair.

Isaac was deeply committed to Jewish tradition. He had a beautiful voice and often led services and read Torah at Congregation Kol Emeth in Palo Alto, most recently alongside Ilana at her Bat Mitzvah in May. Isaac was also athletically inclined, particularly in basketball, a trait he passed on to Ilana as well.

Isaac was kindhearted and had a great sense of humor. His compassion for others extended to people and animals alike. He was a devoted friend. As was evident from the hours they spent visiting him throughout his illness, he was loved by many.

Isaac was dearly cherished by his parents, sister, wife, children, aunts, uncles, cousins and friends. Taken far too soon, his memory will truly be a blessing.

(Sinai Redwood City)

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Jean Pearl

April 23, 1928–November 15, 2017

Jean Pearl passed away on Nov. 15 from a stroke. She battled many illnesses and proved that cats aren’t the only ones with nine lives. She hailed from the Bronx, New York, and was part of the Enzer clan. She was feisty, fun, opinionated, compassionate and a good friend.

Jean is survived by her husband of 63 years, Harold; her three beloved children Debbie, Mike and Sherry; and her grandchildren Max Winter, and Ethan, Rebecca and Jason Pearl. Cats, Pan, Oakland sports teams (all!), chocolate and family were her passions.

Jean was laid to rest on Nov. 17 at Oakmont Cemetery (Garden of Compassion I). She was loved, respected and cherished and will be remembered in our hearts forever.

(Sinai Lafayette)

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Alice Prager passed away peacefully in her sleep on Nov. 24, 2017.

Born Aug. 11, 1922 in Berlin of Dutch parents, Alice survived the challenges of World War II as a teenager, family deaths in concentration camps, and emigration to Uruguay, finally making a home in California with her young family.

Alice’s passion in life was serving others. As a social worker for the International Institute of the East Bay and fluent in five languages, she aided countless numbers of immigrants from all over the world in everything from citizenship to housing issues. Later in life, Alice’s heightened interest in Jewish culture led her to the Magnes Museum in Berkeley, where she became a docent. Over time she accrued a vast personal collection of Judaica and Jewish culture books (her book collection can be viewed at the Reutlinger Community for Jewish Living in Danville.)

With first husband Kurt, she raised two children and acquired two more in her 1972 marriage to Charles Prager.

In addition to researching Jewish culture, Alice loved cooking, sailing, music (chamber music and jazz), sewing, walks on the beach, traveling in Europe with Charlie and spending as much time as possible with all her children and grandchildren.

Alice survived the deaths of her husband Charlie (2002), first husband Kurt (2012), daughter Vicky (2013) and granddaughter Dana (2014). She is survived by her children Barbara and husband Bear, Walter and wife Sue, Madeline and husband Lincoln, by grandchildren Lindsay, Zachary, Dylan, Aviva and Maya, and by great-grandchildren Mason and Ryder.

In lieu of flowers, please consider donating to Planned Parenthood at plannedparenthood.org. You will be profoundly missed Alice aka Liesje and Manya.

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Mina Ring passed away peacefully on Nov. 14, 2017, in Spokane, Washington. She is survived by her sons Michael (Beth) and Bernard; grandchildren Arielle, Aaron (Nan) and Lauren (Mohan); and great-granddaughter Mira. She was preceded in death by her husband, Ernest.

Mina was born in Pinsk, Poland, in 1923. Her family were early Zionists, and Mina moved to then-Palestine as a young girl. It was in Israel, working for the nascent government, that she met and fell in love with Ernest. They were married for 59 years, and Ernest professed to be luckiest man to be married to the woman who was always the most beautiful in the room. Ernest and Mina had a loving relationship that serves as an inspiration for their family; they held hands sleeping every night.

Following the birth of their first son, Ernest and Mina immigrated to the United States, quickly settling in San Francisco and eventually Marin County. They shared a curiosity about the world; together they visited six continents.

Mina was a fashionista, bookworm, ballet aficionado, gardener with a fondness for roses and orchids, and gifted bridge player. She will be deeply missed by family and friends.

Private services were held at the Home of Peace Cemetery in Colma. In lieu of flowers, donations to the charity of your choice in Mina’s name would be kindly appreciated.

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Syvia Siegel

Syvia was born in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, in 1921 and raised in Chicago, a city she loved and knew well. During the 1940s war years, Syvia reported for its local newspapers. She married Albert Siegel in 1945. In 1963 they moved to Palo Alto with their three children. He predeceased her in 2009.

Syvia was employed at several Stanford libraries and was especially proud of having worked on the Index to the Papers of Martin Luther King Jr. Her volunteer work included Jewish Family Services, Stanford Hillel, Hadassah, English tutoring, and a local soup kitchen.

She pursued her passion for lifelong learning through her own program of audited classes at Foothill College and Stanford. Nourished by a love of music and literature, she enjoyed the symphony and chamber music concerts as well as a music appreciation club she and Albert helped establish. Theater and art museums gave her much joy and a lifetime of reading sustained her. She was a lifelong Democrat and supporter of Israel.

Syvia was enriched by her love of family — immediate and extended — and is survived by many who hold her dear: her loving children Gretta, Shepherd, Adena, and son-in-law Steven; devoted grandson Leo; her beloved brother Harvey Pyes and treasured sister-in-law Lois; as well as sister-in-law Natalie, nieces, nephews, and cousins.

Funeral services were held at Congregation Beth Jacob in Redwood City with burial following at Hills of Eternity Memorial Park, Colma.

(Sinai Redwood City)

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Edith Tabak, 79, passed away peacefully in her sleep on Nov. 15. Born Edja Weiler in Rawa Ruska, Poland, in 1938, she was 3 when the Nazis invaded her bucolic town, where she and her two older sisters went into hiding.

Postwar, the sisters emigrated to Montreal, Canada. In the early 1960s Edith followed her married sister out to San Francisco and never left.

She could be spotted enjoying the beauty of Golden Gate Park, walking briskly at the Ocean Beach promenade, choosing a new shade of lipstick at the Nordstrom MAC counter or ballroom dancing at various venues around town.

She loved to cook and bake and got rave reviews for her culinary talents, especially for her chicken soup, apple pie and rugelach.

She coveted jewelry, fashion and beautiful things but her most prized possessions were her son and daughter and, later, her grandson, who affectionately called her Eee Eee. Sometimes she had a funny way of showing it, but her children were her biggest source of joy, accomplishment and pride.

Although not a religiously observant person, she knew that there was a Greater Power watching over her. She had several brushes with death and confounded doctors with her ability to walk around despite lab results that indicated she should have been comatose. She had the highest disdain for hospitals and the medical profession in general but was grateful for their patience and kindness.

Over the last few years, she, just like her idol Frank Sinatra, “did it her way” and lived according to her own terms. Deepest gratitude to her caregivers for their love and support.

We will miss her elegant style, the twinkle in her eye and the way she did a jig when she was feeling good.

Survived by her sister Dora Pellman of Toronto, sister Leah Schein of San Francisco, daughter Lisa Tabak, son-in-law Jeff Lipsett and grandson Ari of Oakland, and son Steven Tabak of San Francisco. Also survived by many nieces and nephews. Predeceased by her parents and brothers in Rawa Ruska, and a sister Eva Taviss of Vancouver, BC. Contributions in her memory may be made to Strybing Arboretum in Golden Gate Park.

(Sinai SF)

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Bill Utzig

Marie, Barbara and Jim mourn the loss of their beloved brother Bill, who passed away in San Francisco on Oct. 28.

He was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, on March 30, 1930, graduated from Slippery Rock State Teachers College, and taught for many years in several districts in Pittsburgh.

Years later he supported and aided the family and faithfully participated in their many projects. They relied on him totally.

His family and friends sorely miss him.

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James David Water, known at Berkeley Chabad as James, Hebrew name David, was deeply immersed in Torah and planning to attend a Yeshiva in Crown Heights, N.Y. His life was cut short at age 45 by as-yet-unknown causes.

James was my son, a beautiful soul, and I will miss him forever. James’s father was Edward Cerny, a writer and pilot at the Red and White Fleet in San Francisco. James, who was known as Eddy Cerny in his youth, attended the Hebrew Academy and the High School of the Arts in San Francisco. We were partners in our artworks; he was in music, a guitarist, and composer, and I painted the huge canvases that he designed. He had just finished his first music album and I’m so sad that he isn’t here to share it with everyone. He needed to know how good he was. It was hard to tell him how much he was appreciated. You can see his videos on YouTube, meditation, and other songs, under the name James Water. His first recorded album, “Thirteen Trees, From Strength to Strength,” will be sold separately.

James left his daughter, Freya Cerny, age 18; me [his mom]; and his sister Marenka Cerny, MFT. James will have a burial at Sinai Memorial in Lafayette on Friday morning, Dec 1.

He is already missed by all the Torah students of Rabbi Yehuda Ferris at Berkeley Chabad.

May he rest in a higher place in the afterworld and transcend to a “higher, exclusively spiritual form of existence.”

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Rita Weisman

November 16, 1917-November 17, 2017

Rita Weisman passed away peacefully on Nov. 17 one day after celebrating her 100th birthday.

Rita was the loving wife of the late Hal Weisman and mother to Rick and Bill Weisman. She was the adored grandmother of Grant, Eve and Wendie. She will be forever missed by her family and many friends. Donations in Rita’s memory may be made to City of Hope or the Southern Poverty Law Center.

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Yahrzeit

Dec. 10 will be the one-year anniversary of the loss of Roman A. Braunfeld. He continues to be missed by all who had the honor of knowing this wonderful husband, father, grandfather, great-grandfather and friend.