64 | JUNE 9 • 2022
continued from page 63
OBITUARIES
OF BLESSED MEMORY
M
iriam Brysk, 87, of Ann
Arbor, drew her final
breath on May 28, 2022.
She joins her parents, Bronka
and Heniek Mason, and her
beloved family lost in the
Holocaust.
Miriam was born
March 10, 1935, in
Warsaw, Poland. Her
childhood was one of
war-time survival in the
Lida Ghetto and with
the Russian Partisans in
the forests of Belarus.
She and her family were
refugees for two years after
the war before coming to
the United States to restart a
life with the help of Bronka’s
older brothers who had
come to the U.S. before the
war. They became proud citizens
of the U.S., enjoying the freedoms
this country offered.
She started school at 12, not
knowing English or a normal
life. Despite that, she graduated
high school at 18 and went on to
college.
Miriam was introduced to
Henry Brysk through her mother’s
cousin who was in the ILGWU
with Henry’s father. Henry was
seven years older and had gotten
his Ph.D. in physics at 23, having
also been a child survivor of the
Holocaust in France. He valued
her curiosity to learn and encour-
aged her to pursue her love of
science. As a result, she went on to
get her M.A. and, while raising her
daughters, got her Ph.D. in micro-
biology. Miriam and Henry would
have been celebrating their 67th
anniversary this June.
Miriam ultimately became a
research scientist with her own
research lab and became a pro-
fessor at the University of Texas
Medical Branch, doing skin dis-
ease research. She published 87
scientific papers and was a cham-
pion of women trying to get ahead
in science and medicine.
She was an artist as well, hav-
ing done painting, stained glass
work and photography as hobbies.
She was fascinated with
computers and became a
digital artist after retiring.
Miriam took a trip shortly
after retiring to see where
her family was killed in
Poland, and she devoted
much of her retirement
to creating art and books
memorializing the 6 mil-
lion. Her art was displayed in
several communities around
the country. Her autobiog-
raphy sold on Amazon and
was awarded two medals for
excellence.
Despite all her accomplish-
ments, Miriam’s proudest achieve-
ment and greatest love was her
family. Her daughters, Judy Brysk
and Havi Mandell, were encour-
aged to develop their minds and
value family. Being a Holocaust
survivor, she stressed the impor-
tance of persevering and being
worthy of the gift our family had
in being here.
Miriam also adored her grand-
children, Josh and Ben Rocher,
Hannah (Sean) Korcal, David
(Taylor) Mandell, and Sarah
(Edward) Hambleton. She felt
blessed to have lived long enough
to have three great-grandchildren,
Elian and Reid (Mandell) and
Arielle (Korcal).
Interment was at Washtenaw
Memorial Park. Contributions
may be made to Hadassah, 40 Wall
St., New York, NY 10005, hadas-
sah.org; or Pardes Hannah of Ann
Arbor, c/o Oran Hesterman, P.O.
Box 511322, Key Colony Beach,
FL 33051, pardeshannah.org/con-
tribute-omena. Arrangements by
Ira Kaufman Chapel.
A Dedicated
Scientist
Miriam Brysk
ANDREA
JEROSS, 76, of
Boynton Beach,
Fla., died June
1, 2022.
She is sur-
vived by her husband of 55
years, Michael Jeross; son
and daughter-in-law, Mark
Jeross and Alona Sharon;
daughter and son-in-law,
Laurie and Sam Zeidman;
grandchildren, Jacob and
Madison Zeidman; brother
and sister-in-law, Stuart
and Debbie Weisblatt;
sister and brother-in-law,
Denise and Jerry Thrope.
Mrs. Jeross was the
devoted daughter of the
late Harold and the late
Ethel Weisblatt.
Interment was at
Machpelah Cemetery.
Contributions may be
made to National Multiple
Sclerosis Society, 733 Third
Ave., 3rd Floor, New York,
NY 10017, nationalmssoci-
ety.org; or Yad Ezra, 2850
W. 11 Mile Road, Berkley,
MI 48072, yadezra.org/
donate. Arrangements by
Ira Kaufman Chapel.
FLORENCE
LEVY, 92, of
West
Bloomfield,
died May 27,
2022.
She is survived by her
daughter, Carol Berger;
son and daughter-in-law,
Richard and Jill Levy;
grandchildren, Joey
(Jillian) Berger, Shelby
(Maria) Berger and Nicole
Levy; adoring great-grand-
children, Carson Berger,
Cameron Berger, Phoenix
Berger and Nelli Berger;
many other loving family
members and friends.
Mrs. Levy was the
beloved wife of the late Ira
Levy; the mother of the late
Howard Levy; daughter of
the late Rose and the late
Sam Sisskind.
Interment took place
at Clover Hill Park
Cemetery in Birmingham.
Contributions may be
made to a charity of one’s
choice. Arrangements by
Dorfman Chapel.
VERONICA
HILDESHEIM
LEYDESDORFF,
106, of Brussels,
Belgium, died
May 28, 2022.
She lost 114
relatives in
the Holocaust,
including her
parents and sib-
lings, and yet,
throughout her entire life,
she remained optimistic
and kept a positive attitude.
She loved her family and
proudly displayed family
photos and stayed in touch
via Facetime.
Mrs. Leydesdorff is sur-
vived by three daughters,
Sonja (Robert) Kass of
Huntington Woods, Sara
(Michel) Guillaume (of
Belgium) and Maya (Jaap)
Schilo (of Amsterdam);
seven grandchildren,
Jeremie (Sheri Rosen)
Kass, Elias Kass, Adena
(Jeffrey) Rose, René (Yael)
BenHaim and David
(Anne-Catherine Goor)
Guillaume, Danny (Esty)
Schilo and Tanya (Yaakov)
Safir; 17 great-grandchil-
dren, Corban and Dara
Kass, Arlo and Abel Kass,
Anna and Nolan Rose,
Yoav, Rafael and Avigail
BenHaim, Noah and