It is with great sadness that I share the news that my mom Gloria Aisenberg passed away this weekend.
My mom was a feisty, brash, outspoken, opinionated woman. She considered herself a bit of a rebel. She was outgoing, extroverted, and gregarious. She was born and lived in Worcester, Massachusetts her entire life. At the time of her passing, she had lived in the same house for 60 years. She had deep roots in the community and was a well-known and popular figure. She was a teacher and tutor who was loved and cherished by multiple generations of children and their parents. It was impossible to go anywhere in Worcester without meeting someone who knew her, and she was never too rushed or busy to stop and chat with old acquaintances for awhile.
Mom was an intelligent, educated, cultured person. She was proud to be a member of the historic second graduating class of Brandeis University. She told many stories of well-known public figures and professors that she encountered there, including Eleanor Roosevelt, Leonard Bernstein, and the sociologist Max Lerner. She was a voracious reader, and went through one book after another. She was passionate about word puzzles. She loved classical music and opera, and music was always playing in the background in our home. She was an avid walker, and kept herself fit and youthful. She was also a world traveler. Her destinations included Israel, Spain, Portugal, Gibraltar, Lithuania, Russia, Italy, France, England, and the Netherlands, in addition to the Western US states and several trips to California. She was widowed at a young age, but was fiercely independent. She continued to work and started an active new life after my dad's passing.
Mom was a devoted, adoring, and doting grandmother. She loved her grandchildren above everything else. She drove to Stamford for every birthday party and school event, and was always available to take care of my kids when I traveled or needed child care help. My boys could always count on their Grammy to take them to Friendly's, to a movie, for pizza, or to Chuck E. Cheese, which was never my favorite activity!
Mom was a strong person and a fighter. She overcame many health issues over the years. I always joked that she had nine lives. But she was not able to prevail this time. Seeing her struggles and her slow decline over the past couple of months has been heartbreaking. Giving up was not in my mom's personality or nature. But in the end she was too frail to fight anymore. I hope that she is now at peace. I take solace in the knowledge that she lived a very full life and will be remembered fondly by so many people whose lives she touched. I will miss our long daily FaceTime sessions, when she would ask about her grandchildren, play remotely with my dogs, and do her exercise regimen with me. We had started planning how she wanted to celebrate her upcoming 90th birthday in August. She had described the cake that she wanted.
I know that this has been a very difficult year for so many people, and that I am joining many others who have lost loved ones and are grieving and experiencing the same profound loss that I feel.
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