Obituaries

Schpeiser- Marvin ,97, of Newton Upper Falls and Mashpee (New Seabury), MA, passed away peacefully on February 5, 2018 after a brief illness. Born in Brooklyn, NY, to Joseph and Katie Schpeiser on November 2, 1920, Marvin grew up in Brooklyn where he became a life-long Dodgers fan. After graduation from Thomas Jefferson High School, Marvin earned a BA in 1942  from New York University where he starred on the varsity tennis team.  He attended Boston University where he received graduate training in Social work.  After Marvin served in the army for three years in World War II, earning a Bronze Star, he married the love of his life, Rona Raphan, on April 6, 1946, to whom he was married for 64 years.  He loved spending time with his family at their home on Cape Cod, shopping for bargains, reading, and playing tennis (which he did into his 80’s). Rona preceded him in death on February 28, 2010.  His sister, Edith Weinberger (Robert), died at age 100 in 2016.  He is survived by his three children, Karen Fairbank (St. Louis, MO), Robert Schpeiser (Newton Upper Falls, MA), and James Schpeiser (Patty Tully) (Newton, MA), and four grandchildren, Olivia, Isobel, Estee, and Levon all of Boston, MA. Marvin is also survived by his sister Mildred Druss (Abe) (San Francisco) who turned 101 on February 2, 2018. He is also survived by his nieces and nephews.  Marvin spent his entire career as a Jewish Federation professional in Detroit, Milwaukee, Boston (the Combined Jewish Philanthropies and the North Shore Federation), and Atlanta (the Atlanta Jewish Federation).  He was a career fundraiser and worked in community relations.  Marvin had a unique sense of humor and never met a pun he didn’t like.  Services at Wilson Chapel 234 Herrick Rd., Newton Center, MA, Thursday, February 8, 2018 at 11:00 a.m. Remembrances may be made to Combined Jewish Philanthropies, 126 High St. Boston, MA  02110, or to a charity of your choice.

Siegel, Dr. Edward A., of Stow, on February 5, 2018. Beloved husband of Susan L. (Dorner) Siegel. Devoted father of Adam Siegel (Rebecca) and Samantha Abato (Zane). Loving grandfather of Benjamin, George, and Luca. Dear brother of Paul Siegel, David Siegel, Jane Goldstein, and the late Barry Siegel. Services at Temple Israel, 477 Longwood Ave., Boston (parking on the Riverway), Thursday, February 8, 2018 at 12:30 pm. Interment in the Ostro Marshoe Cemetery, West Roxbury. In lieu of flowers, donations in Dr. Siegel’s memory may be made to the American Cancer Society, 30 Speen St., Framingham, MA 01701.

Longtime New York film producer Ezra Swerdlow died of complications from pancreatic cancer and ALS on Jan. 23 in Boston. He was 64.

Swerdlow amassed more than two dozen producing credits on feature films, including “Spaceballs,” “Hannah and Her Sisters,” “Waiting to Exhale,” “Wag the Dog,” “Enchanted,” “Zombieland,” “21 Jump Street,” and “The Equalizer.”

Swerdlow was the son of Amy and Stanley Swerdlow, and grew up in Great Neck, N.Y. He attended Hampshire College, where he met his wife, Lindsey Hicks, and studied political theory at Rutgers University.

In 1979, he was hired by a friend as a location scout on the Woody Allen film “Stardust Memories.” Swerdlow then worked on “Arthur” as a unit production manager, on “Tootsie” as a location manager, and on “Zelig,” “The King of Comedy,” and “Broadway Danny Rose” as a unit manager. He was an associate producer on “Radio Days.”

He briefly moved to Los Angeles in the late 1980s and collaborated with Mel Brooks on “Spaceballs,” but primarily worked in New York City. In 2011, Swerdlow was nominated for an Emmy award for producing the HBO movie “Too Big to Fail.”

Swerdlow is survived by his wife Lindsey, son Nick, daughter-in-law Caroline, sisters Joan and Lisa, brother-in-law Rob, and brother Tommy. A

Memorial service will be held in New York.

Roger A. Patkin, age 55, of Needham, died at home surrounded by his family on Tuesday, January 30, after a long battle with cancer.

Roger is survived by his loving wife Susan and his three cherished children, Jake, Carly and Julia; his parents Stephen and Sally Patkin; his brother Todd and his wife Yadira and their son Joshua; and his sister Kimberly Macchi and her husband Dean and their three children, Alexis, Talia and Makenzie. He also leaves his mother-in-law Roberta Kaufman of West Hartford, CT; and his two brothers-in-law, Peter Kaufman and his wife Jennifer and their children Molly, Noah, Jack and Luke, and Jeff Kaufman and his wife Wendy and their children Robert, Alex and Max.

Roger graduated from Needham High School in 1980 and received his BA from Tufts University in 1984. He received his JD from Boston University in 1988. He was CEO and ran the family business, Autopart International, for many years.  He still served as CEO and President after the sale of the business before becoming an independent business consultant. In recent years, he was a Professor of Entrepreneurial Leadership at Tufts University where he discovered a passion for teaching.

Roger was an avid skier and snowboarder and enjoyed running, cycling and swimming. He also loved cooking, fishing and travel. He was happiest spending time with his family, especially on Cape Cod and at Okemo Mountain.

Funeral services will be held at Temple Beth Shalom, 670 Highland Avenue, Needham, on Thursday, February 1, 2018 at 1;30pm.Shiva will be held at the temple following the memorial service and then at Roger’s home in Needham on Thursday 7-9pm, Friday 2-4pm, Saturday 7-9pm and Sunday 1-4pm. Family and friends are invited to attend. Donations in Roger’s memory may be made to Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, PO Box 849168, Boston, MA 02284-9168, www.Dana-Farber.org/give ; or Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, David Avigan Research Fund at www.bidmc.org/giving or checks with memo: Roger Patkin/Avigan Research Fund to Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Office of Development, 330 Brookline Avenue – OV, Boston, MA 02215.

Lenore “Lee” Miller-age 95, entered into rest on January 28, 2018. She was the beloved wife of the late Ervin B. Miller. Cherished mother of Ellen (Richard) Mazow and Laurence (April Chang) Miller. Dear grandmother of David (Beth) Franklin, Debra (Ben) Zalvan, Jenna Miller, and Sara Miller. Loving great-grandmother of Jake and Emma Franklin and Zach and Zoe Zalvan. Graveside service will be held on Tuesday in Philadelphia. Family and friends may visit at the home of Ellen and Richard Mazow on Wednesday and Thursday evenings from 7-9 pm with minyan at 7:45 pm. Remembrances may be made to Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation, 60 Walnut St., Wellesley, MA 02481 or online at: www.jdrf.org

Carlene Evelyn Donato of Waban, passed away peacefully of advanced Alzheimer’s on January 30, 2018 at her home. Carlene would have been 90 in February. She is survived by her loving husband of 67 years, Frank Donato who was devoted to caring for her at home; her son Steven and his wife Patricia of West Newton; her son Mark and his wife Virginia of Weston; five beloved grandchildren; and her brother Ronald Shea of Gardiner, Maine.

Visitation will be held at 9:00AM on Saturday, February 3^rd at St. Julia Church in Weston, MA with Mass following at 10:00AM. Interment at the Linwood Cemetery following the Mass.

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made in Carlene’s name to The Alzheimer’s Foundation of America at: www.alzfdn.org.

Of Framingham, MA, originally of Newton, MA, passed away on January 30, 2018 after a brave battle with cancer. He is survived by his beloved wife of 52 years Elaine (Wollock), his son Jeff and his wife Karen of Hopkinton, MA, his son Mark and his wife Brooke of Goffstown, NH, and his five grandchildren whom he adored, Nicholas, Emma, Samantha, Harrison and Brandon.  He was the devoted son of the late Philip and Ida Bograd of Newton, MA.

Barry was a graduate of Boston University and proudly served his country as a platoon leader, executive officer and company commander of the US Army’s 109^th Transportation Company in Stuttgart, Germany.

Barry was an entrepreneurial risk taker.He was involved in many different worlds, from coaching high school football, to hosting many long running cable television shows, to being active in town politics, to being a published author and to owning a successful human resources consulting business. Human resources was his main profession for over 40 years, but music, sports, politics, his family and just being fascinated with people have been other passions throughout his life.  Among a number of awards he has won he is most proud of winning the 1997 Salute to Framingham Award for his service to the youth of the town and the 2003 John D. Erdlen 5 Star Award for his outstanding contributions to the human resources profession.

Services at Temple Or Atid, 97 Concord Rd., Wayland, MA, on Thursday, February 1, 2018 at 11:30 am. Burial to follow at Beit Olam – East Cemetery, 48 Concord Rd., Wayland, MA.

Memorial observances will be held at the residence of Elaine Bograd on Friday, February 2, 2018 from 2:00 pm to 4:00 pm and Saturday, February 3, 2018 from 7:00 pm to 9:00 pm. In lieu of flowers, remembrances may be made Parlin Hospice Residence, 10 Green Way, Wayland, MA 01778 or the charity of your choice.

Shane- Art, passed away peacefully at home on Sunday, January 28^th after a long illness. He is survived by Martha, his wife of 30 years and son, Jeffrey.  He was recently predeceased by his sister, Suzanne. He was dearly loved by many cousins, nieces and nephews.

Art touched many with his kindness and humor and will be remembered for his sharp mind, love of music and generosity.  Above all, Art lived a life full of love and compassion.

Services at Congregation Beth Elohim, 133 Prospect Street, Acton, on Wednesday, January 31, 2018 at 10:00 am. Interment will be at Beit Olam East Cemetery, 42 Concord Road, Wayland.

Memorial observance will be at his late residence, Wednesday 2-5 pm, Thursday 6-9 pm.

Donations in celebration of his life may be made to Congregation Beth Elohim, 133 Prospect St, Acton

Age 99, of Key Biscayne, Florida, died at home on January 28 after a short illness. He is survived by his beloved wife of 21 years, Charlotte Michaelson Frank; his children Marcia (Mark) Rosenthal, Norman Cohen, William (Christine), Matthew, Ira (Robyn); stepchildren Martin (Anne), Phillip (Ronni), James, Richard (Allyn) Michaelson, Susan Michaelson. He was pre-deceased by his first wife June Handleman, daughter Betsy (Norman) Cohen, brothers Herbert and Gerald, and his second wife, Ruth Held. He had 10 grandchildren, 8 step-grandchildren, 4 great-grandchildren and 8 step- great-grandchildren.

Born and raised in New York City, the son of Adolf and Kitty Frank, Sy moved to Long Beach, Long Island at age 13, where he became a star high school baseball player, and was invited to try out for the New York Giants baseball team. He attended Hofstra University before enlisting in the Army Air Force, where he attained the rank of Major at age 24, was a pilot trainer and served in the U.S. and Europe during World War II. After the War he lived for many years in Long Beach, New York and built a successful entrepreneurial career, starting with aircraft charters, and then owned and operated a chain of movie theaters, with his devoted partner Sid Sinetar, in New York City, Long Island, RI and Florida.

Sy moved to Florida, where he remained active both in the motion picture field and in competitive sports. An avid tennis player and golfer into his 90’s, he won many championships including the Over 50 Mens Doubles Tennis Championship in Key Biscayne when he was approaching 90. His many friends and family will always remember his wit, levity, and optimistic nature. Funeral services will be held Thursday, February 1, 2018 at 11:00 am at The Wilson Chapel, 234 Herrick Road, Newton Centre, MA.

Stanley W. Chaban-of Chestnut Hill and East Falmouth, MA, on January 27, 2018. Stanley was everything to Dolores (Laven) Chaban, having been married to her for 55 years. A proud adoring incredible father and father-in-law to his daughter Mamie Marcus and her husband Jerry and a fantastic grandfather to Laura and Sam Marcus. Stanley’s extended family included Estelle Silverman, Randi Zifrony, and Steven Silverman. Stanley graduated from Thayer Academy and Boston University. His career in real estate spanned four decades. In that time he enjoyed the respect of countless people and developed a full circle of friends from all walks of life. He enjoyed traveling with his family to Club Med and spending time with them in Menauhant in East Falmouth. Services at Temple Sinai,25 Canton St., Sharon, on Tuesday, January 30, 2018, at 11:00 am. Burial to follow at Sharon Memorial Park, followed by a reception and receiving of well-wishers back at Temple Sinai until 3:00 pm.Memorial observance will continue at the residence of Mamie and Jerry Marcus on Wednesday 2-4pm and 7-9pm. In lieu  of flowers remembrances to Mass General Hospital, Healthcare Advocacy, 125 Nashua St.(Suite 540) Boston, MA 02214 or Thayer Academy,745 Washington St., Braintree, MA or Dexter-Southfield School,20 Newton St., Brookline, MA 02446