Bob Krandel had a joke suitable for any occasion — and many that were unsuitable for any occasion.
When he was at a Silicon Valley federation board meeting and a Conservative rabbi was, rather intensely, describing what sort of kosher food the JCC needed to offer, Krandel couldn’t help himself.
“He looked at me with a big grin, interrupted the conversation and said, ‘For us people from Louisiana — where does crawfish fit into all of this?'” recalled longtime friend Joel Rubnitz.
Krandel, affectionately known as “Big Bob,” also sent his friends daily e-newsletters chock full of jokes everyone laughed at but no one would think of repeating in mixed company.
On Wednesday, Feb. 21, Krandel and his wife of 49 years, Ruth, were teeing off during a golf vacation in Palm Desert when he suffered a heart attack and died on the fairway. He was 70.
Ruth Krandel’s father had also died of a heart attack on the golf course.
“It’s a wonderful way for a person to go, but not so wonderful for the people who are left,” she said.
“Bob was a philanthropist in his own quiet way. He was a mover and shaker, and if you gave him a job to do it would get done and done right.”
“Big Bob” was born and raised in Jennings, La., where his family constituted the entire local Jewish community. If there were incidents of anti-Semitism, it never seemed to bother Krandel, a naturally genial man who made friends easily.
He met Ruth at Tulane University, where he earned a business degree. The two moved to San Jose in 1957 and were married at Temple Emanu-El, which the Krandels and their two children attended through the years.
At the time of his death, Krandel was the synagogue’s president, after first serving decades ago. His son, Steve, is currently the treasurer. “It was really sweet to watch them work together,” said Rabbi Dana Magat, who conducted a well-attended funeral service for Krandel on Monday, Feb. 26.
Krandel first worked at a savings and loan, and later went into real estate development. And he got even busier after he retired. He became a licensed mediator and was instrumental in the negotiations that led to the construction of the Levy Family Campus in Los Gatos, which houses four local Jewish organizations, including the federation and JCC. He served as president of the federation, but the achievement he savored most was helping to launch Chai House, a Jewish senior facility.
“He was an only child with two uncles and an aunt and they had nowhere to go in those backwater Louisiana towns, so he became very interested” in senior housing, explained Ruth Krandel.
“He became sort of an expert in senior housing and was on five senior citizen boards, three of which he did through the San Jose Housing Authority. They asked him to be on those boards.”
In addition to watching out for the elderly, Krandel enjoyed his work with Jewish and non-Jewish teens through Jewish community programs and the Rotary Club. His rapport with the younger generation was hardly a coincidence.
“When Dad came [on teen trips], they’d always end up needing an extra chaperone,” Steve Krandel recalled. “He’d sit in the back of the bus with all the guys and tell jokes, and the girls would be upset they wouldn’t get any attention.
“My family always teases me that I’m the biggest kid in the house and my dad was, in some ways, a terminal teenager.”
Jyl Jurman, CEO of the Silicon Valley Federation, said Krandel was the man who could solve any problem or fix any situation. He also had plenty of practice fixing things at home, and not necessarily by choice.
“My sister and I used to joke about it because not only was he Mr. Fix-It, he was also Mr. Break-It,” said Steve Krandel with a laugh. “He was very good at breaking things and putting them back together.”
On a serious note, his son added, “He was phenomenally selfless. He was always willing to help anybody, and not just willing — he’d actually do it.”
Bob Krandel is survived by his wife, Ruth, children Steve Krandel and Lori Ghan, and four grandchildren, all of San Jose. Donations in his memory can be sent to Temple Emanu-El’s religious school building fund at 1010 University Ave., San Jose, CA 95126.