Dot's Memories
Aunt Dot's (Werner) letter to Frankie Schulman Grandmother Kuhlman - sons Matthias and Harris. She was married 3 times - second husband father of her two sons. Your mother resembled her greatly. They lived in a small town in Lithuania. Grandfather lost his life when he was dared to lift a heavy rock in the village square. Uncle Matthias sold my father into the army to take his place. It was done in those days. Matthias came to America and later sent for my father. Father landed in England with mother - and he went on to America - and she remained in England for awhile until he could send for her. Now about mother. Her father was a writer of the Torah - red-haired. My mother's mother died at her birth. However, her stepmother was wonderful to her. They lived in a much smaller town and were very poor. Both families lived in Lithuania. Grandfather Schaffer became blind through such close work - and wrong treatment by the village druggist. When my father heard of this beautiful blond, he wanted to meet her. A shadchan arranged a meeting. Father also was very good looking - and after one more meeting they were married. Mother came over by way of steerage - pregnant. Everyone was so good to her - so she had more to eat than most. Many years later when we lived on Third St - a man whom mother met on the ship came to visit us. He had become very successful. My father landed in Phila - and a very wonderful family by the name of Levy befriended my parents. Their son Gerson later became chief Rabbi in Chicago. My uncle settled in Allentown and father followed him and settled in Bethlehem. He began to peddle pictures and frames all through the South. The black people were so kind and he learned to like them. He told us many interesting stories. We lived on the hill where most of us were born. Rae was born in Phila. Your mother and I were born on the hill. I'll make a correction - Joe, Ted, Ben, Flo and Hilda were born on Third St. I'll never forget when we moved. It was a great improvement and when they put my father's name in gold on the window of the store, I think it was the biggest thrill of my life. From then on, I think you know the rest. The struggles etc. Mother was loved by all - an unusual woman. Dad was sweet - but how he loved to gamble. He'd sneak off in the afternoon for a game of poker and left mother to do everything. Of course when he came home a winner it wasn't so bad, but a loser there was hell. I don't know if this is what you want Frankie - if you have any questions, just ask me. Our home on Third St was always open house - and when any Jews came to town - there was always an open door and food for them. Since your mother had a good job at Hess Brothers and Rae at another department store - much of the work feel on me - after ironing 23 shirts when my brothers grew up - I would dash out on dates - how in the world did I live so long. I did have a happy spirit - and maybe that helped - but you don't want the story of my life and my affairs - that would take forever. Love, Dot By the way, Uncle Matthias had 12 children - Dad had 8 - so there are Colemans spread far and wide. By the way again: When I married Chase there was the same doubt in the Werner group, but since my mother-in-law loved bridge, she soon began to accept me and like me. Dot Werner Trudy Glassman's Memories (daughter of Rae) My mother, Rachel, was the first-born child of Hannah and Harris Coleman who went on to have seven more children. As a little girl, her friends used to call her a 'nanny goat' because of her white blond hair. The one real regret in her life was that because she was the eldest child, and female, and because grandma Hannah needed help with the house and the raising of the other children, she took Rae out of elementary school to help her at home. She was never permitted to return to school. The family of Ted Coleman may be interested to know that when Ted came down with diphtheria as a little boy, Rae was given the job of nursing him back to health. I remember her telling me about putting cool compresses on his forehead most of the night for several nights to bring his fever down. When I was 3 years old, my Mom and I went back to Bethlehem to have my tonsils removed and to recuperate at Grandma's house. I don't remember much about it except the smell of the ether in the room and the taste of the jello that Grandma made me. Another memory of Grandma's house (I think it was 1110 W. Market St.). My Mom and I were visiting again and I had a great time playing with a little black and white kitten. I decided to give the kitten a bath, and holding the kitten, walked into the large linen closet in the bathroom to get a towel. There was a trap door on the floor of the closet which opened onto a chute where the dirty laundry was thrown to the basement. Someone had left the trap door open and I was little and so was the cat -- and down we went from the second floor to the basement. Luckily, there was dirty laundry at the bottom and I got out with only a scraped arm. The kitten was even luckier. My arms saved him! My mother, Rachel Coleman Stamilman, died at the age of 53 after a week or so in a NY hospital. I believe I was 23 years old at the time, which would have made Bernice 30 years old. Without the help and devotion of Rachel's sister, Julia Coleman Solis-Cohen, I don't know how we could have coped. Aunt Jule came to NY from Philadelphia, slept at our apartment, but spent every day, all day, at the bedside of my mom at the hospital. One Sunday, Joe and Ted visited the hospital and when they left, in tears which they hid from my mom, we discovered they had made arrangements to have all the hospital and medical bills sent to them in Bethlehem. More memories: I remember Grandma making noodles for the chicken soup on a large wooden table. She rolled out a large circle of dough and then -- with a big chopper -- cut out thin perfect noodles. When Uncle Joe Coleman came to NYC he would usually take me to see a Broadway show. Once he spotted Lawrence Tibbett (a famous opera singer) at intermission and got his autograph. At 'Camp Smiley' I used to play bridge with Aunt Dot Coleman Werner and Aunt Flo Coleman Kitey. Dot was a great player and during the years that we corresponded, she would usually include a description of a bridge hand and the grand slam she had made. She was a great gutsy lady with a wonderful sense of humor. To include remembrances of the spouses of all eight Coleman aunts and uncles would make this narrative much too long -- but I must conclude with a story of Al Kitey (Flo's husband) and Francis Solis-Cohen (Julia's husband). It was not unusual for visitors from Bethlehem and/or Philadelphia to drive into NY to visit us for Sunday dinner. It was always such a joy to see them and my mom always had enough to eat for everyone. I was about 12 years old one such Sunday -- and after our dinner, Uncles Al and Francis wanted to visit the lower east side. My father and I went with them and after walking around that interesting neighborhood for awhile, Francis started complaining that his feet hurt (not unusual) but the rest of us wanted to continue our walk - so after some more moans from Uncle Francis, Uncle Al leaned down and scooped up Francis in his arms and carried him like a baby, over his shoulder, down Delancey St. We all laughed so hard, our stomachs hurt. Uncle Francis too! We were all thankful that the 3 brothers had escaped being drafted in WW II -- when, guess what? Uncle Ben was drafted at age 40 and sent to the Pacific Theatre of War! One night I answered the phone and it was Rudy Vallee calling my sister Bernice (his secretary) to give her some dictation. I talked to Rudy Vallee! The story of how Bernice got to be Rudy's secretary I think is fascinating. Depression time -- Bernice had graduated Hunter College with a music major. But no teaching jobs available. She became a student at a secretarial school, graduated, and got a job through the school, with an architect. Bored after a few months, Bernice went to see the Director of the Secretarial School. While there, a call came in from Rudy Vallee's office. He needed a secretary! But the Director refused to send Bernice -- she wasn't experienced enough. When Bernice left, she marched herself to the Vallee office, was interviewed and hired and worked for him for several years. She fell in love with Vallee's bass violinist, Harry Patent. They married and had 2 beautiful daughters. These memories are dedicated to: Rachel Coleman Stamilman, Julia Coleman Solis-Cohen, Dorothy Coleman Werner, Joseph Coleman, Isidore Coleman (Ted), Benjamin Coleman, Florence Coleman Kitey, Hilda Coleman Tunick, Bernice Stamilman Patent, Marjorie Solis-Cohen Joseph, Harriet Coleman Gottlieb and Harry Kitey. A note of advice to the next generation: Those of you who are lucky enough to have a living mother and/or father -- ask them lots of questions now. The grandchildren of Hannah and Harris are getting older. Some day, I hope, maybe in 25 years or so -- you may want to have a family reunion -- and it may be too late to collect the reminiscences of the other generations. We -- the grandchildren of Hannah and Harris -- wish we had asked our parents about their parents, etc., etc. Trudy's Memories (2) I never knew grandfather Harris Coleman. My mother told me he was a quiet, reflective man who was a poet and a scribe. Grandma Hannah was the "boss' of the family. Many years ago I spent a few Xmas vacations with Aunt Julia & Uncle Francis Solis-Cohen & their daughters Margie & Frankie at their home in Philadelphia. My parents would put me on the train to Philly (all by myself!) and Aunt Jule would pick me up at the other end. Margie & I were about the same age. She was 9 months younger than I and the story goes that I was such a beautiful baby that Aunt Jule decided to have one too - and presto - Margie was born 9 months later - & she's the one who turned out to be the beauty. When Flo & Al got married, they came to NYC at the beginning of their honeymoon & then went on to elsewhere - (it many have been the Finger Lakes) & took Bernice with them! For years the family laughed about it - how the Kiteys took Bernice on their honeymoon. Flo and I spent a lot of time together at "Camp Smiley". She said to me once - "It's lucky neither of us talks a lot. That's why we get along so well. Neither of us drives the other crazy". Uncle Chase Werner played tennis into his 80's. He used to call me "Toodles". Grandma lived in N.Y. at the Stamilman apartment for several years and Hilda joined her there for a year or so. They shared a room and bath. I remember that Grandma used to make Passover wine every year. She bought the grapes from the horse-drawn fruit & vegetable wagon which came to our neighborhood. Hilda and Trudy were both hot-tempered & once they had - not exactly a fistfight - but a lot of shoving and screaming went on. Hilda taught at the nursery school on the Columbia University campus where the children of the professors were enrolled. She took Trudy with her a few times to "help her" but mainly played with the guinea pigs & hampsters. Louis Stamilman, at the age of 12, came to the U.S. from Lithuania with his father in the steerage of a ship. They settled in Scranton, Pa. where Lou sold matches on street corners to supplement their income. Fast forward - to 1908 - when he graduated from Lehigh and two years later married Rae Coleman. His first professional job (as a Civil Engineer) was with Bethlehem Steel where he was the first Jew ever hired by the company. My mom, Rae Coleman Stamilman, gave me a wonderful present - love of baseball. At her suggestion, I would meet her in the stands at the Polo Grounds (near our home) after school on Fridays when the N.Y. Giants were playing a home game. Every Friday was Ladies Day - and all females could enter for 25 cents. She explained all the plays to me and, thanks to her, I became enthralled with the game & devoted to the team. Now I'm a big fan of the N.Y. Mets and I watch the games while reclining in front of the TV. I wish she were watching with me. Maybe she is. Trudy Glassman Anne Broome's Memories (daughter of Bernice, granddaughter of Rae) I am taking this opportunity to give you some tidbits (very little I'm afraid) about my grandparents. Did you know that my grandma Rae married my grandpa Louis on the rebound? She had a boyfriend, I think from Lehigh, and it didn't work out. My grandfather,who adored her, got her in a weak moment I guess. They had a very wonderful marriage according to what I remember my mom saying. Grandpa Louis was one of the first (if not the first) Jewish men to graduate from Lehigh University - class of 1908 in Civil Engineering. I was also told by my mother that when my grandma Rae became engaged, her mother was pregnant with Hilda. I believe that my mom was only 4 years younger than her aunt. Correct me if I am wrong, but I think that my grandmother was the oldest child, my mother the oldest grandchild, and I am the oldest great grandchild. My son David, born in 1964, may be the oldest great-great grandchild. Anne Broome Frankie Schulman's Memories (daughter of Jule) One of my mother's (Julia Solis-Cohen) virtues was that she could laugh at herself. As you all know, she married into an illustrious victorian and sometimes stuffy family (not all, but some) and she loved to recount some of her experiences when she first met them. First of all, she didn't "look" particularly Jewish, second of all, her maiden name was Coleman (who ever heard of a Jewish Coleman) and thirdly, while the family was not pleased, they were not surprised that my father would marry "out of the faith" a sin only slightly more oppressive than marrying a non-Sephardic. Picture then, this young woman, whose background you all know, arriving for dinner. It could even have been a Friday night when tuxedos were often called for. My dad was in uniform. The Sabbath blessings were not new to her, but I wager a lot of other things, like sherry, crumpets, rib roast etc. were. Picture again, a magnificently laid table, with all the silver (not just for company) and a butler and a maid. There was ambrosia for dessert and my mother had never seen a combination of oranges and coconut served before. Not knowing what was on top of the oranges, she carefully brushed the coconut away and took the oranges. She told this story as an indication of my Grandmother's tact. She said "Thomas, I think you took the dish away before Miss Coleman could get the coconut". My parents met originally at a Jewish get together in either Bethlehem or Allentown. Fate led my father, who was stationed in Allentown, having come home from the American Field Service Ambulance corps (he knew enough not to have to walk anywhere) to be on the corner of 5th and Hamilton in Allentown, holding a puppy, when my mother walked by. She surprised him by recognizing him and saying "Hello, Sergeant Cohen(this was before he got busted back to private because he wouldn't call his troops out to stand reville in the rain) (doesn't that sound just like him?) and therein starts the romance. He went to dinner with Julia at her home and I am sure, while the ambiance was completely different from his home, he probably felt a lot more comfortable there. They subsequently (I don't know the time frame but I am sure it wasn't a long time) got engaged and eloped to Wilkesbarre. I do know he went off to war (ambulance corps again), my mom worked at Hess Brothers and when Dad came home again he borrowed a suit from Uncle Joe which was miles too big for him. P.S. Add to my remembrance of our grandmother the fact that she gave Marge and me each a quarter, which in those days was a lot of money. Also, I recall that she and my mother spoke English to one another because whenever I came near they said "steigen,die kinder". Frankie's Memories (2) When we visited New York it was a trip planned well in advance. Nothing spontaneous. I remember going to the movies near the Stamilman's. Do you have any memories of Bernice getting a job with Rudy Vallee which is where she met Harry? I recall all sitting around the phone waiting for the call. It was always a person-to-person call for Joe Coleman, and in that way they sent the message "yes" (Johnny always said someday they would get fooled and Joe Coleman would be there). Bernice was, I think, a Phi Beta at Hunter and I think she majored in music. She played piano beautifully. When my father went overseas the second time, I know they were married, but I can't figure out what year they were married. I know they had their 35th anniversary when there was a polio scare so we didn't go. Also, we didn't get to the family reunion because of that (I think). I knew only our grandmother. I recall vaguely sitting on some man with a beard's lap and that was probably our grandfather. Isn't it too bad we didn't ask more questions? That is why I keep saying to my kids, if you want to know something, ask us now. She came to our house occasionally bearing her own pots and pans. She looked very much like she did in the family picture, long dress and all. She was in Atlantic City when she had a stroke and came to our house. I was about l4 at the time. I recall the family gathering there and my next recollection is her funeral on a rainy day (my mother said "the heavens cry when good souls die") and having the cortege stop in front of the synagogue and pause a moment. Frankie's Memories (3) Aunt Dot was one-of-a-kind. No, I take that back because her sisters exhibited the same kind of inner strength and resilience that she did. She managed, somehow, to laugh at situations she found herself in, rather than moan and groan as others might have. My clearest memories are her visits to us, very often in times of crises. She made my mother laugh until the tears rolled down her cheek--real "belly laughs". As you know, during her last years, I tried to get her to tell us some things about the family but I received only one letter. I phoned her from time to time and I should have gone into the history more . I think at the end she was just too tired. She loved playing bridge, and even on her worst days, she put on one of her many wigs and out she went. It was a real tonic for her. I believe she had one year at Moravian and she was proud of that. She was madly in love with Chase. I thought of another anecdote. It may be apocryphal, and I do think the story, while true, grew over the years. When Uncle Ted went to visit Aunt Rae, he got on the subway, got lost and spent a good part of the day going from the Bronx to Brooklyn and back. Frankie Schulman Ginny Simon's Memories (daughter of Frankie, granddaughter of Jule) Although my grandfather Francis died when I was five, I have very vivid memories of visiting him. Before he was ill I can remember walking along with him, my small hand in his aging one. I remember visiting him after he was ill, in his hospital bed at home, summoning his nurse with all sorts of funny names to amuse me. When I learned of his death I remember reassuring myself that he must simply be taking a very long nap, from which he would awake. I have had to content myself with hearing about him from those who knew him better. While I regret this, I am forever pleased with other's tales of how kind and gentle he was, a poet, thinker and pacifist who died too young. My memories of my grandmother Julia are much more vivid. Mostly I remember how much I meant to her. I could make her laugh with my antics, and she would tell me stories to make me laugh. One story she repeated many times involved some bears eating spaghetti at my cousins' home in Northern Wisconsin. I loved doing things with these cousins and my grandmother. I know it made her very happy to see us all together celebrating a Bar Mitzvah, or some such occasion. There were several times that my grandmother came to live with us. At the very end of her life I remember waving to her in her window on the second floor as I left with my date, now my husband, for our junior prom. I feel very grateful that, although she often lived far away she was able to see some of these milestones. Perhaps my most enduring memory of "Aggie" was the butter cookies she used to make. She began by defrosting "real butter" several days before the occasion. One day, walking home from school, I would know that baking day had arrived by the smell of those cookies. Lunch was hurriedly eaten, I popped a few of those in my pocket, and back I went to school. I have always made those cookies with my daughters from her recipe, but they never turn out exactly the same. My oldest daughter is Rachael Julia, so I am hoping that somehow she knows this, and that her legacy lives on. Ginny Simon Memories from Larry, Don, Tom and Shauna Joseph (children of Margie Joseph, grandchildren of Jule) From Larry, Don, Tom and Shauna Joseph: We are grandchildren of Julia Coleman Solis-Cohen. Like our mother, Marjorie, she was short, with a husky voice as low as a man's. But she was truly a lady -- we never saw her wear anything other than a dress. After her husband Francis died, Grandma Julia used to spend the summers with us at our lake home in Manitowish Waters, Wisconsin. She was a fixture at the card table in our living room, teaching us to play Canasta, Rush & Bank, and Spite & Malice. Spite & Malice was particularly well-named. Grandma Julia was an expert and ruthless card player. She'd cackle in that deep voice every time she won, which was always. Our other grandmother, Gussie Joseph, was Grandma Julia's nemesis in Scrabble. They'd sit down at the boathouse. Each had her own dictionary, and they'd argue loud and long -- you could hear them all the way across the peninsula. You'd swear they hated each other. Then the next day they'd be back at it. When she wasn't at the card table, Grandma Julie was in the kitchen, filling blintzes, grinding chopped liver or making chicken fricasee, a medley of smells and a smorgasbord of odd-looking organs. Eating it was a bit like a biology lab. She also made the ultimate, absolutely to-die-for dessert: chocolate tort. It was layered with a meringue crust, then a layer of hard chocolate, then cinnamon mixed with whipped cream, and topped with whipped cream mixed with melted chocolate. Because of the meringue, it could only be made on days of low humidity. The whole process was unbelievably touchy. It took forever. She was a master. Her other specialty was baking popovers, light as air and very temperamental. Our grandfather on our dad's side, Harry Joseph, would sneak into the house, then slam the door, collapsing the popovers. He'd grin. She wouldn't. Grandma Julia lived with us in Illinois for a couple of years. Dad converted the garage into a bedroom for her. She snored. Hmm, maybe that's where we get it from. Sallie Cherr's Memories (daughter of Joe) I have so many memories that I don't know where to start. Our grandmother was already living in NYC, as far as I can remember, but she used to come and stay at Aunt Dot's when she came to Bethlehem, until the day she went down to the basement to shovel some coal into the furnace. There she found a Christmas tree, went up and packed, and came to our house. I remember her as very sweet, but what Harriet and I liked the best was when she went to bed. We would sneak into the bathroom to view her false teeth in a glass on top of the hamper. How we giggled!! When Grandma died, her body was brought from NYC (where she lived with Aunt Rae) and brought to our house. The coffin was put in the middle of the summer rug (which had a big design in the center). I was not there, they thought I was too young, but Harriet told me this story afterwards. Well, for many years I wouldn't go near the center of the rug. The store was a very important part of everyone's life. Upstairs you could see the outline of the apartment where the Family lived. When I could get Dad (Joe) to go up with me, he would tell me where each room was. Dad had a scholarship to Lehigh, but in his 2nd year, he was told that he was needed to run the store and so he left school. He told Walter (my husband) that he lost $10,000 the first year, but went on to make it a success. Uncle Ted eventually joined Dad in the store and the two brothers watched out for the welfare of their sisters and brother. I understand that even after they bought out the family, they were always there for everyone. They were both extremely philanthropic. During the Depression they helped young people furnish their homes by selling everything on "time". We saw many letters from people thanking them. One car dealer told me that Dad had let him sell refrigerators from his show room so that he could stay open. I remember men coming to our back door for food and Dad telling Mother she should feed them but to always give them a small chore to do so that they would not feel that they were taking charity. Bethlehem was full of immigrants working at Bethlehem Steel and therefore many languages were spoken. I was always awed that my Dad could speak to everyone in their language (at least enough for all to converse). He would never allow a salesman to take him out to lunch. He never wanted to be in debt to anyone. I remember that behind the store was a row of, sort of , shacks. They looked like attached freight cars. This was where many of the immigrants lived with their children. Behind them loomed the Steel Mill. You could see them pouring the molten steel. Sallie's Memories (2) Spoke with Trudy tonight. I did find out that our Grandmother, when she became ill, was moved to Phila. because Aunt Julia thought it was too much for Aunt Ray to take care of her and then there were all the Solis-Cohen doctors that could take care of her. She was taken to Phila. where she died and then her body was taken to Bethlehem to her son Joseph's house. Trudy also said that Aunt Hilda lived with her Mother at Aunt Rae and Uncle Lou's. .Evidently Hilda and Trudy used to fight a lot. I am almost positive that Aunt Rae was born in England. Mothers had a tendency of telling their daughters about family history, sons didn't. I know that my Dad was so tiny when he was born that they wrapped him in cotton, put him in the equivalent of a shoe box and put it under a stove (probably wood or coal burning), to keep him warm. Our Grandmother collected all of the clothing that the family had outgrown, packed it in oilcloth, sewed it up and then it was Dad's job to address the package. Many times I asked him if he remembered the address, but he just remembered that it went to Lithuania. I know that Harris started with a "push cart" like they used in the NYC Houston street area. I remember Uncle Lou, with Dad driving, wanted us to see that part of NYC so that we could see how our Grandfather started out. I was told that Grandma was the risk taker in the family and that was why they bought the store. Eventually, Dad and Uncle Ted bought the entire block. Harris died before my sister Harriet was born, which was in 1926, thus the first namesake, followed by Harrison and Harry. Aunt Rae was a really wonderful person. We used to go to NYC and stay with her, Uncle Lou, Bernice and Trudy. We learned about NY from them as well as being exposed to two wonderful people who were very much in love. I believe that Uncle Lou went to Lehigh and that was how they met. Aunt Rae had an Irish Setter called Pixie, who was a female. They never had her fixed because they were always going to mate her, so when she was in heat, she wore a sanitary belt and Kotex. That was how I learned the "facts of Life". Which reminds me of a story about my Dad who grew up surrounded by sisters. He married Mother, who one day called him at the Store and asked him to bring home a large package of Sanitary Napkins. When he arrived home, he handed her a large package of paper napkins. He had no idea what Mother really wanted. The Years of naivite. Aunt Rae was very special to me. Once, when I was trying to impress someone she told me the story of her first trip to downtown Manhattan. I believe that they lived in Washington Heights. She got all dressed up to go to this fashionable part of NYC, and feeling quite good about how she looked, she took the bus to the stop in front of the Library, where the big Lions are. As she got off of the bus, she looked down and was horrified to find that she had on one brown shoe and one black one. And, she said, "no one noticed or cared", except she did. She said that it brought her back to earth as to what was really important. We visited her once in the hospital and knew that the chances of seeing her again were very slight. She was still thinking of others, even then. I was 12 years old and she told my Mother that it was time to let me wear lipstick. To a 12 year old, it was a wonderful present. Aunt Julia and Uncle Frances were also special, as a matter of fact, all my Aunts and Uncles were. Whenever they visited us in Bethlehem, Uncle Frances brought the "Fairies" who left pennies all over the Living Room, under anything a youngster was allowed to lift. In Later years, Walter and I lived in Phila. and got to know the Solis-Cohens and the Kiteys as adults. Aunt Julia made us Shad, which she cooked for hours so that the bones melted. I always wanted the recipe, but never got it. Aunt Flo and Uncle Al introduced us to nature through many means, including books, one of which I still have. They would visit us, with the twins, and Harry and Mother would serve us lunch in the Dining Room. Sallie's Memories (3) Aunt Dot and Uncle Chase: Carol and I spent a lot of time with each other at the age when we weren't too aware of our friend's parents. We stayed at each other's homes. I do remember that the house was full of cigarette smoke and that she started teaching us how to play bridge. Also remember when Uncle Chase broke his ribs and he had to sit up all night in a chair in the Living Room. Uncle Ted and Aunt Jane: When we got married, Aunt Jane called us to come to the house when Walter and I were down for a weekend. We went and Aunt Jane gave us a substantial check, but told us not to tell Uncle Ted. After dinner, Uncle Ted called and invited us to take a walk with him. Said he hadn't seen us in quite a while. Well, we went for the walk with him and he gave us a substantial check and asked us not to tell Aunt Jane. When we went home and told Dad (Joe) who laughed and told us not to say anything. Everyone would be happier that way. Uncle Ted loved the races and he and Dad would take me with them. I'd pick the horses in some races and if they won, I'd be given a pittance. Uncle Ben would come to the house on Sundays and pull me up on his lap and read the funnies to me. Then as I got older, he would take me along to Allentown to visit Esther and her niece Audrey. I corresponded with him when he went overseas and when he came home, off we went to Allentown. Aunt Hilda and Uncle Arthur seemed to be a part of our lives from back to my early memories. He was always there when there was a medical problem in the family, otherwise he was there with his camera. I enjoyed being with both of them and enjoyed visiting them to go fishing, and have dinner with them Aunt Hilda taught me how to cook steamers, which Walter enjoyed. Sallie's Memories (4) My niece Ann wrote such a beautiful letter about Bobbie's and my sister Harriet and I feel humble adding to it because she captured the true essence of what Harrie was all about. She used the name Harrie,partially because she wanted to be the son Dad never had. She was very athletic when we were children and until she became ill. She excelled in all of the sports when we went to Camp Woodmere and played a good game of golf. She bought a summer home in Loveladies,LBI,NJ and shared it with the family. We seemed to always be welcome. Harriet enriched the lives of everyone who came in contact with her. She had a great sense of humor, was sensitive to other people's feelings and was so very, very brave. Bobbie and I have often discussed her and feel that if she were alive today, she would be a true Woman's Liber. Sallie Cherr Peter Cherr's Memories (son of Sallie, grandson of Joe) My grandpa, Joe Coleman I have a number of memories of my Grandpa Joe, scattered across time and mostly in snippets. Bits and pieces that form a fragmentary, mosaic-like picture of him. We lived in New Jersey and he and my Grandma Betty lived in Bethlehem, so we didn't see them all that often......I remember mostly that when we went when I was little we would hang out at the big house with Grandma, and Grandpa would often be at the furniture store working...I remember that he would often seem stern and a bit distant, but even when I was little I somehow knew that that was an outward thing and that he enjoyed spending time with me...Three things he did with me always let me know that. While everybody was hanging out at the house he would ask if I wanted to go to the store with him and I would go......It was this multi-floored other world of adventure with unbelievable secret hiding places and places to explore....Once there he would turn me loose while he worked, leaving me with a warning to be careful and to not mess anything up.....I would wander and hide and imagine wild adventures and get warned by anybody working there I was going to get in trouble...but I never did....periodically, Grandpa Joe would come find me, see if I was okay or needed anything, sit for a moment asking me questions about my latest adventure and then send me off to play again with another warning of "don't get in trouble"..... The second thing that we "boys" did together, my grandfather and me, was go to the golfing range, just he and I......Grandpa Joe loved to hit golf balls.....and clearly this was a time for him to get away from everyone and everything....And I remember how whenever we were in Bethlehem and he wanted to go to the driving range, often he would ask me to go with him....I had no idea what I was doing.....I didn't even really know what golf was....But, I would go and we would get buckets of balls and just stand there for a long time wacking the hell out of them for a long long time with Grandpa Joe telling me "good shot" every once in awhile....or adjusting my grip or swing...It was mostly silent, but it was always a good time.... Finally, I remember that when I was small Grandpa Joe would always take me to the third floor of the house so that he and I could get away.....He was always tense and would tell me he was stiff and would sit down and have me massage his shoulders....now at first that seemed like a strange thing to be doing, massaging my grandpa's shoulders....but I began to love it because it was a time we always got to spend alone together and I could ask him tons of questions and he would answer them all, no matter what I would ask......and best of all, somehow he must have known that stories are my favorite thing in the world because he would tell me stories of the family and of him growing up, tons of stories that I would visualize and get lost in.....Unfortunately I only remember bits and pieces of those stories now...but I remember how I would look forward to each visit to Bethlehem in hopes that Grandpa might take me upstairs to have me give him a massage and to tell me some new stories.... That's what I remember at the moment...If I remember any of the stories I was told or anything else, I will pass it along. Peter C. Cherr Ann Friedenheim's Memories (daughter of Barbara, granddaughter of Joe) My name is Ann Friedenheim-Csandl and I am the daughter of Barbara Coleman, Joe and Betty Coleman's daughter. I really do not have a lot of pleasant memories of Grandpa Joe. Unfortunately, I think that by the time I was old enough to be aware of him, his depression was pretty severe. One thing that really stands out for me was the incredible loudness of his snoring. Sometimes, when I slept over at their house on Pine Top Trail, his snoring would wake me out of a sound sleep! Then, his rhythmic snoring would be the only sound in the house except a loud clock that also tick-tocked every second. Sometimes I was awake for what seemed like a long time, listening to him. I could never understand how Grandma slept through the racket! Fran, If we are including memories of our family members who have passed on such as Harriet Gottlieb, then I have lots of stories to tell. But more important than all the funny and interesting stories, is the fact that she was one of the people in my life who changed me forever. She changed me with her love and shining beauty and the way she loved life. I think that I received this quality from her just from being around her. Because we lived only across the street, through the alley and across another street from the Gottliebs, I could walk there by myself even as a small child. I liked to hang out there whenever I could. I probably made a pest of myself, but I couldn't get enough of her. Aunt Harriet was so creative, imaginative and for me, a source of unconditional love. She was so encouraging. I thought she was so brave the way she had to be "hooked up " to the dialysis machine in what was Bill's bedroom. I thought she was so brave for having to be a vegetarian and not eat salt because that was how dialysis patients had to eat back then. She changed me by showing me that in spite of life's challenges and difficulties and pain, a person could still live a day fully and with happiness. Aunt Harriet also changed me with her death which was the first death I really experienced. After she died, I could not believe that I would never see her smile again. I could not believe that such a beautiful soul was gone. Even as I write these words, I feel like I am 12 years old again when my father came home that night to tell us what had happened. I still think of her often and miss her. I wonder how it would have been between us all if she had lived to a "ripe old age". Ann Friedenheim's Memories (2) This time I am writing you about Betty Coleman. I hope this qualifies as she was "a married into the family" Coleman. My grandmother smelled a special smell that was so sweet and comforting. I can still feel the way my face felt when I would nuzzle into her fur coat. Grandma was loving, always polite and gentle to everyone she met. This is the way I remember her. She would spend a special day with me and take me to Nan Carlby's fancy dress store where she would try on all kinds of beautiful dresses. Even though this was a little boring, I felt like I was with royalty in the way that people treated her. Grandma Betty was an elegant person. After the dress shop, we usually went to Hess's Patio for lunch. The experience of having lunch there could take up pages all by itself, but let it be enough to say, Grandma sure knew how to make me feel special. Speaking of royalty, Grandma Betty was really wonderful at spinning tales to feed my imagination. One story in particular stays in my mind. There was a house off of a long driveway which was just off of Walbert Ave. in Allentown. She took me to this house one time and prepared me by telling me I had to be on my very best behavior and use my very best manners because we were going to visit the King. I don't remember much about the actual visit. Years later, as I would slip into her car, I would turn to her and say, "Are we going to visit the King today?". She would look at me and just burst out laughing. That house is still standing and I think often of her imagination and her nurturing of mine when I drive by. Grandma always left her lipstick marks on our cheeks. It was kind of a trade mark. She was always late and even though we would be annoyed and aggravated while waiting, the minute she came in the door, we were just overjoyed to have her there! Grandma loved antiques and is responsible for my interest in old furniture and things. We drove around and stopped at places along the way. Sometimes I know we were lost, but Grandma would say "Don't worry, dear. We aren't lost, we are just on an adventure". I think this is the philosophy she applied to most of her life experiences. Ann Friedenheim Harrison Coleman's Memories (son of Ted) My father told me that Grandma started a little store selling crockery out of a barrel that had been packed in the old country. Grandpa sold pots and pans from a pushcart on the dirt roads. He also gambled but always paid his gambling debts. Grandma sold brass fittings and parts to make a still for bootleg whiskey during prohibition. Grandma was the businesswoman. When she saw the "greenhorns" coming over from Europe, she opened a furniture store and sold metal beds and straw mattresses. She let the customers pay out the cost each week, on their honor. Grandma put in a window in the house at street level so people could see things for sale. I remember my father telling me about my grandfather going to the market on 3rd Street to buy fresh horseradish and the farmer would grind it. My father delivered merchandise by horse and wagon at the end of the day. He would strap a coal stove on his back and carry it up 3 flights of stairs to the customer. The streets were still dirt and I think he told me they kept the horse in the back. Then they got a truck that would always break down. In the cold weather they had to lie on the ice under the truck to fix it. It was as if Stevie Kirka was part of the family. He started working at the store when he was very young. He helped Grandma unpack the wooden crates that had the crockery she was selling. When I was little, I wouldn’t eat from my mother; I would only take food from Stevie. Furniture Hall was started in an old building that Montgomery Ward used to be in, next to Moravian Bookshop on Main Street, on the west side of town. I thought the store was dark and dingy. It was probably the mid-thirties. In the beginning a Jewish man from Easton ran it, then Harold Yonney took it over in 1936. Harold was the finisher. The store was supposed to be upscale furniture, in a better neighborhood. Uncle Ben was the first to get Lazy Boy recliners in his own store. He had the foresight for a good product before H. Coleman and Sons! I have a picture of my Dad in a WWI uniform. He was probably in the reserves. My Dad played golf and took me when I was 10 years old. I had my own set of golf clubs and I played with him and his friends. Then he said it was silly chasing a little ball around and gave it up. My Dad was born on the Wyandotte Street hill. Whenever I was in the car with my Dad and Aunt Dot coming back from Philadelphia, Aunt Dot would always point out the house as we came down the hill and say "this is where your Dad was born". Everybody loved him. He loved to sing and he always told me to sing softly. He would take me to Aunt Flo’s. He was generous to everyone. Before my mother and father were married, Grandma lived at 1110 W. Market St. I remember Grandma with gray hair and glasses. She went to Atlantic City in the summer. In the 5th grade, I dressed up as a girl on Halloween and wore Sallie’s dress. I went to Calypso School on 8th Ave, Nitchman Junior High on Union Boulevard, and to Liberty High School. I also went to the University of Miami in Coral Gables from September until Christmas. I went home for vacation and never went back. Aunt Rae had beautiful red hair, freckles, and blue eyes. When I was visiting her once, I was eating sugar out of the sugar bowl and when someone scolded me, she said "let him alone, he must need that.’" Uncle Francis Solis-Cohen was my godfather. When I was 16 I was in the Jewish Hospital in Philadelphia for testing an experimental allergy drug and Aunt Jule came to visit. Aunt Dot used to sit on the front porch at 1110 W. Market Street and sing songs. She was a bridge freak and lived for bridge everyday. And boy did she smoke those cigarettes! Uncle Chase wore spats. Harrison Coleman Sheva Cohen's Memories (daughter of Ben) Memories of the Coleman Family I believe I am the youngest cousin amongst Harris and Hannah Coleman’s grandchildren. Both of my grandparents on the Coleman side of my family had died before I was born, as had my grandparents on my mother’s side (the Max family). I was an only child, so any kind of family ties were very meaningful to me, especially given the lack of siblings and grandparents, and the age of my parents.. My mother and father were married some time around the age of 40. I understand that my parents had been dating before my father went off to war in New Guinea, and when he returned, they married. We lived in Allentown, because that’s where my mother’s family lived, and as a young child, because my mother was so attached to her sisters and brothers, I was really closer to my mother’s family. My mother had one sister, Ida, with whom she was especially close and I was as comfortable at Aunt Ida’s house as I was at my own. Ida lived with her two unmarried brothers, Bill and Lou. Uncle Bill especially showered a lot of attention on me, not only paying for my piano and dancing lessons, but also sitting with me at the piano as I practiced. My aunt and uncles were about the same age as grandparents would be (my mother was the youngest surviving sibling of her one sister and five brothers). I also had some other aunts and uncles in Allentown on my mother’s side of whom I was very fond. It was usually a treat to get together with my father’s family – there were generally more children around and for the most part the aunts and uncles seemed a bit more lively (and younger) than my mother’s family. That made it more fun for me. The "Sunday Drive" was a big part of our social life. We would get in the car and drive to one relative or another’s house to visit. My father felt most comfortable "dropping in" on Aunt Dot, who was always a very positive person with me. She always showered me with complements, possibly sometimes to the detriment of her own children. I was very tall for my age, and she would always tell me how great it was to be tall and how I should consider being a model! I am not sure this jived with the reality of how I looked, but it sure made me feel good for the moment. And sometimes we would drive to Philadelphia to visit Aunt Flo and Uncle Al, and less frequently, to the Solis Cohen house. The Kitey kids were "so much older" than I was, but they "seemed nice." Fran and Hannah were always considered so smart. Aunt Flo and Uncle Al really knew how to relate to kids and they actually talked to me directly, which was great. Trips to the cottage were nice too, but since I was "so much younger" than all the other cousins, I was never really part of the kids activities. Aunt Flo and Uncle Al tried to temper my father’s style of teaching me to swim, which was "to throw me in the water, " with a more gentle approach, but I was so upset with my father’s approach that even the expert instruction of Aunt Flo and Uncle Al couldn’t overcome the tears. It really took the swimming lessons from Mr. McKinley, paid for by my Uncle Bill, to teach me to swim. By the end of my first lesson with Mr. McKinley, I felt secure.. There were always heated discussions about whether it was okay to just drive to Uncle Ted’s and Aunt Jane’s house without calling. We practically never drove to Aunt Betty’s and Uncle Joe’s house. I think I might have been there once or twice, at the most. But when I was with them, they were very pleasant to be with. When I went to college, Uncle Arthur and Aunt Hilda became more important in my life. When I needed a break from the NYC scene at Barnard, I visited Aunt Hilda and Uncle Arthur a few times. I always enjoyed talking to them (and sitting there sneaking cigarettes with Aunt Hilda). Uncle Arthur would always tell me about his jade collection and when he took me for a ride on the boat, it was a real treat. Richard Tunick was the closest cousin in age to me and when he was at Lehigh during my high school years, we became friends and I think enhanced each other’s social life a bit by introducing each other to other guys and gals from Allentown and Lehigh. My father loved all of his nieces and nephews a great deal –they were all born before he had children of his own, and so I think he formed stronger ties to them than he might have otherwise if he had had his own children at a younger age. He always especially liked Trudy. But he was quite fond of all of his nieces and nephews. When Harry and Joyce moved to Allentown, it was a treat for my parents. They joined the same synagogue we belonged to and both my parents were proud of the accomplishments of Harry and Joyce. Both Harry and Joyce treated my parents very kindly, inviting them to family events when others that lived at a distance were not able to attend. My father would sometimes "hang out" in Harry’s office, usually appreciated for helping where he could. When my family visited Harry a few days before he died, he asked with much earnestness for my mother’s phone number – he was concerned that he had not had a chance to visit her in the nursing home. He wanted to call her (before he died?). For my father’s 80th birthday party, we all went to Harry’s house before dinner for drinks and hors d’oeuvres (Harry made baba gnoush from scratch for all of us, served with "daikon." I had never had a daikon before and was very impressed with his level of culinary sophistication!) My father cared very much for everyone in his family. He wanted us all to be close to each other. He told me that when he was young, he felt like he gave his mother "a lot of trouble." He always felt a little badly, I think, that his brothers were in business together, and he was left the little store down the street. He worked very hard at his business, unfortunately trying to do everything himself. He would sit at his desk off of the kitchen and do all of his bookkeeping at night, and he would most often deliver the furniture all by himself, carrying heavy loads on his back. His furniture was "lower end" than the Coleman Furniture store, but I know that if someone couldn’t find what he needed at his store, I always heard him referring him or her to Coleman’s Furniture up the street. My mother and I would go to Bethlehem often on, I think it was Thursday night, to help my father in the store. Thursday night was the one night of the week when stores were open. My mother would help my father sell furniture. When she went back to teaching, which she did when I was about 8, I think she stopped having the energy to help my father in the store. My mother taught school for thirty-five years. My parents always argued with each other. But there was tenderness between them, and as they got older, the arguing was not as frequent. My mother learned to like football, because it was something she and my father could watch on TV together. When I first met Marty in NYC, my parents were very curious to find out more about this fellow. My father was sent as an "emissary" to check him out. He came to NYC by himself to visit me, which he rarely did, and it was on a weekend! He took Marty and I out for dinner. For most of his life my father referred to Marty as "what’s his name." But he really loved him dearly. Marty has one mannerism which I don’t like, and of course after my father met him for the first time, he commented to me on that mannerism. My father was never one to pull any punches. My father always tried to be very helpful. The "cottage" in Sumneytown still sports many of the remnants he brought up there to help decorate. And of course, my father could always get anything we needed "for wholesale." When we would buy a chair, for say $700, he would say, "I bet you paid $300 for it –I could have gotten it for you for a lot cheaper." And of course, Jackie and Bill brought my parents great joy. When my father decided it was time for Jackie to learn how to crawl, he put a belt around her stomach and pulled her up on her knees so that she was in the crawling position –it was nearly the same way I learned how to swim! And Bill was my father’s helper. When his arthritis bothered him, or he was too weak to get something, Bill was called upon to get the task done for him. It was a good working relationship –at two Bill felt very important to be called upon and entrusted with these responsibilities and my father felt Bill was learning to take his place in the world (and also then my father didn’t have to do it himself!). When my father was visiting in Elkins Park and he was quite weak and a bit senile, we couldn’t find him. My mother and I had been involved with doing something, and it was time to pick Bill up from nursery school –my mother and I had lost track of the time, but my father just picked himself up and walked over to the school. We found my father halfway home from the school holding hands with Bill and guiding him "pretty" carefully across a busy street. My father always helped where he could find a way to do so. Sheva Cohen Jackie Cohen's Memories (daughter of Sheva, granddaughter of Ben) When my Poppy Ben died, I was nine. Although I was young, I have a few isolated memories of Poppy Ben’s playfulness, generosity, and his good, loving heart. I remember when I was five, my parents, Poppy Ben, Grandma Esther, and I were at Trexler Game Reserve near Allentown. About the only thing I recall from that day was my Poppy Ben chasing a chicken until he caught it for me. The large chicken scared me and so he found a fuzzy baby chick to show me instead. I remember thinking how great that was-- my big Poppy Ben with this tiny little chick in his hands just for me. Looking back though, that scene reminds me of what a gentle man he was, and how much he cared about making his grandchildren happy. I also remember being fascinated by his bald head. I found it really amusing to pretend it was a bongo. It probably annoyed the hell out of him, but he would let me pretend that I was a drummer and his head the drum (this would only last for a few minutes though. I still can’t see why he didn’t find it as enjoyable as I did). But, he would do anything for his grandchildren. I also remember that their basement in Allentown was filled with antique kitchen gadgets. Want to peel that banana? Stick it in the banana peeler. I think there was a tool for everything down there. They put Ron Popiel to shame. I also remember going to Poppy Ben’s eightieth birthday party in Allentown and how lots of family members gathered to be with him and my Grandma Esther, and how happy we all were to be with family. While my Poppy Ben was chasing chickens for me and always searching for and finding bargains, my Grandma Esther was teaching me to spell. As a teacher, she valued education and instilled my brother and I with practical knowledge, such as how to read, write, shop, and invest money so we could appreciate nice things. I distinctly remember car rides with her to and from Allentown, where she would drill me on how to spell "Pennsylvania," (it was imperative that we knew how to spell the name of our state before anything else) and teach us that money is able to have "babies" if invested properly. As for the shopping, it made her happy, if only to get dressed up and go to the store, even if she didn’t end up buying anything. One of the greatest memories I have of my grandma was going with my mom to the Sheraton School in Allentown for an assembly honoring my Grandma. Students at the school presented poems, essays, songs, and speeches about my grandma, honoring her for her years as a teacher. Not only was I in awe that this whole assembly was dedicated to my grandma (assemblies were for people like Martin Luther King, Jr, and George Washington!), but I felt special and lucky to have this woman, who had taught so many children and was loved by all, as my grandma. Grandma Esther and Poppy Ben were also deeply committed to Judaism. They lived in walking distance of their synagogue and I remember walking with them on Saturday mornings. When we got there, they would know everyone. At Seders Grandma Esther, the youngest of her family and the "Spring Chicken," would ask the Four Questions in Yiddish. My grandparents taught Bill and I the importance of Jewish tradition and made sure that it was an important part of our lives. Jackie Cohen Hannah Kitey Kaufman's Memories (daughter of Flo) I did not know our grandparents, Hannah and Harris Coleman. They and their oldest daughter Rae died before I was born. But I did know Hannah’s half-sister Martha Krupe. I’ve always wondered if she was like our grandmother. She was very short and kind of roly-poly. She had her husband Uncle Nate both had squeaky voices. I liked visiting them in their home in Bethlehem, although I picture the front rooms were very dark. We were there once on the Sabbath, and I saw a flame burning on the stove, so I turned it off. It was then I learned about not working on the Sabbath – Aunt Martha, following the Orthodox ways, left a flame burning all day so she would not have to do any work. Thus does a little girl learn about the old ways. My mother, Flo, was very close to her brothers and sisters. On weekends we often drove to Bethlehem and Allentown to visit Uncle Ted and Aunt Jane, Uncle Joe and Aunt Betty, Aunt Dot and Uncle Chase, and Aunt Esther and Uncle Ben. We saw Aunt Jule and Uncle Francis more frequently since they lived in East Oak Lane in Philadelphia, not far from our home in West Oak Lane. It was also always a treat to visit Aunt Hilda and Uncle Arthur in Englewood, NJ. And in the summer time, where my parents (Flo and Al) had a summer cabin in Sumneytown, PA, many of the aunts and uncles visited us there. Uncle Ben, especially, loved the cabin and often brought us items from his store to use there. We always stopped at the store, Coleman’s Furniture, on 3rd St. As young girls, Fran and I loved to run between the rugs which hung from ceiling to floor and moved on their runners as they were pushed. The ‘boys’ (Ted and Joe) always greeted us from the back of the store. When Rich and I married, one of the first things we did was stop at the store to pick out furniture for our new apartment. When Fran, Judy and I were teenagers, our aunts invited us to Bethlehem and fixed us up with dates among the finest Jewish families in Bethlehem and Allentown. I remember once staying overnight at Aunt Betty’s and Uncle Joe’s at holiday time. Aunt Betty kept large tins of very thin, baked holiday cookies on her back porch, and I would sneak down and sample them. I also remember feeling very elegant as she served us at her lovely dining room table – my first taste of rhubarb. Aunt Jane once treated us to a play at the Bucks County Playhouse and took us to lunch beforehand. I also remember her at the cabin once when a cat had climbed a tree and we were all in distress because she wouldn’t come down. Aunt Jane had a good laugh about that. Aunt Dot charmed all those who met her. She would write poems for any family event. She had beautiful clear skin and told us that was because she never washed her face with soap, only using cold crème on it. At the cabin, she played bridge and canasta. My parents were big Scrabble players. Aunt Jule had a very rough, deep voice, probably from smoking. She was always fun to be around. I remember once she baked chocolate chip cookies for us, but on the condition that we cleaned up afterwards. A good deal for us. I just had a long conversation with Trudy. I think you mentioned that she and Frankie had different memories of how our grandmother died. I asked Trudy, and she said that Hannah was living with them in NY. She was getting sicker and sicker, and Aunt Jule said she should come to Phila. because they could get her a good doctor, through the Solis-Cohens. So she lived with Jule in Philly when she died. Hannah Kaufman Liz Kaufman Taylor's Memories (daughter of Hannah, granddaughter of Flo) Driving in the car, undoubtedly smushed between Albert and Danny, waiting with anticipation for those tall orange buildings where Grandma Flo lived. As soon as we spotted them, we would strike up the chorus with "We're almost there, we're almost there, goodie goodie gumdrops we're almost there." I was always fascinated by the candy machine in the lobby---you had to pull the knob really hard and then CACHUNK, the lifesavers would fall from the sky. The smell of the elevator still remains in my memories. Once inside, my memories are very clear, however quite limited. What was important to my five-year-old mind? Big fat crayons! Grandma Flo had the biggest crayons I had ever seen. Games – there were always games to play. But the best thing was staying over night. We would pull out the sleeper sofa and Grandma Flo let me stay up and watch All in the Family AND The Jeffersons. They must have only played these shows in Philadelphia, because that was the only time I ever saw them. I would share a room with Grandma Flo when we stayed over night. Her bedtime rituals were much different than mine. She had things in her bathroom that I had never seen before and spent more time in there than I did. Grandma Flo woke up really early, I would pretend to still be sleeping so that I could watch her. Many of my memories of Grandma Flo are of me observing her and hearing wonderful stories of her and my grandfather that I never knew. I know that she was a very strong woman both emotionally and physically. She was a wonderful teacher, mother and wife. I wish I was older when she was alive, but the few memories that I do have and the abundance of stories that I have heard do leave me with a clear sense of who Grandma Flo was, where she came from and how her memories continue to influence my life. Liz Kaufman Taylor Fran Bennett's Memories (daughter of Flo) When I think of my mother, Flo, I can see her sitting at the kitchen table reading a mystery book or doing a crossword puzzle. She was a wonderful mother, very calm and loving. Mother was so patient. If we were anxious to cross the street, she would say 'There's always a lull'. I don't remember her ever yelling at me. I'm not sure if that is good or bad, but it is true. Mother loved to sing and dance and listen to baseball games. Hannah and I often sing some of the songs that she taught us. She was an excellent swimmer and taught us to be good swimmers. Because of her, my children are also good swimmers, and I know this will be passed down to the next generation. She also could speak French. Mother told us that she met our father, Albert, on the rebound. They were both counselors at Blue Mountain Camp. I guess Dad had recently broken up with another girl. The summer cabin in Sumneytown was a special place for the Kitey family. Many of the Coleman family enjoyed coming there. Uncle Ben and Aunt Dot were frequent guests. Trudy and Morty loved the cabin too. I think mother was the first one in her family to go to college. She was very proud of that - she helped found a sorority at Temple University. She started as a physical education teacher, and when she went back to teaching after Hannah and I were about 11, she taught first grade. She was a natural teacher. The whole Coleman family was very family-oriented. We visited Bethlehem often. I loved going to the furniture store - my favorite thing was to push myself between the hanging rugs. I wonder how long we did that each time we visited the store? Uncle Ted and Uncle Joe would always be there to greet us. We would continue our journey by going to Allentown to see Ben, Esther and Sheva. Aunt Dot and Uncle Chase were so wonderful. We were always amazed that Uncle Chase was still playing tennis into his 70's. I think it was the chocolate snacks that gave him his energy! I remember Aunt Dot visiting Alan and me in Schenectady. She was pretty old then and was complaining about some things, but when I found her a bridge game at the local JCC, she perked up and was able to stay awake for the evening game. Our family visits also included visiting the Tunicks in Englewood and the Patents in the Bronx. We all had such good times during these visits. Wouldn't our mothers be surprised to know that Judy and I both live on the West Coast now and have visited each other many times. Aunt Jule and Uncle Francis were the relatives who we saw most often since they lived in Philadelphia. I remember that the 25th anniversary party for my parents was held at Aunt Jule's house. My brother, Harry, planned the party - we presented our parents with a portrait of Hannah, Harry and me - it was painted by a friend of Harry's. My father, Al, died when mother was 53. She continued teaching until she was 62. She sold her house and moved to an apartment not too far from where the house was. She showed signs of Alzheimer disease starting at about the age of 65 - too young! She died in a nursing home in Bethlehem when she was in her early 70's, in 1982. Since Harry is no longer living, I want to remember him here. It must have been a shock to Harry when he was 8 years old to have twin sisters become part of his family - I'm sure it wasn't easy on him. Mother had a hard time when she was pregnant with us - I believe she was bed-ridden for several months. Harry also loved to sing - he was always singing show tunes and Gilbert and Sullivan songs. He was also the neighborhood magician and loved to give magic shows. He was a member of AZA and the boys were often around our house or playing basketball in the back yard. Harry tried many sports. I remember he once came home with a lacrosse stick and a ball - I had never seen one before. Harry spent many years as a counselor at summer camps - Raquette Lake in New York State was his favorite. He made many friends there. Harry went to college at the University of Pennsylvania and also graduated from Penn Law School. He and Joyce moved to Florida when they got married, and later moved to Allentown. They moved to Manhattan later in his life and he worked for Revlon. Alan and Cliff are Harry and Joyce's 2 sons. Harry loved to give advice to his younger sisters - about schools or about our dates. He was a wonderful and caring brother. Fran Bennett Judy Greenspan's Memories (daughter of Hilda) My mother Hilda was the youngest of the 8 living Coleman children. From the stories she told me, she was quite a devil and seemed to get into trouble quite a bit. When she was about 3 years old, she went outside the store/house, sat down on the trolley tracks, and wouldn't move. Finally someone, I think she told me Uncle Joe, came out, picked her up, and took her inside. When she was very young she disappeared and no one could find her for a whole day. She had fallen down the coal chute after the truck had delivered coal. Eventually someone had the idea to look in the basement and there she was, on top of the pile, sound asleep. She told me how she used to go with her mother to pick out a live chicken, which was then carried in a basket up the hill to the shochet to be slaughtered. She was very angry when her father died when she was in high school. She told me Grandma had quite a temper and when she got angry, she would put a dish towel in her teeth, twist it up into a whip, and spank mother when she was bad. Mother was left back in either second or third grade. She had made friends with an older girl who always played hooky and followed her around. Grandma and Grandpa had no idea this was happening but when mother was left back because she had hardly been in school all year, she was forbidden to play with that child again. Mother and Dad always used to visit Bethlehem when I was young. The first place we always stopped was H. Coleman and Sons, Furniture, "the store". When I was about 6 or 7 Uncle Ted gave me a little chair that looked like a miniature Chippendale chair. I was carrying it out of the store myself when Uncle Joe stopped me because he thought I had stolen it. He had no idea Uncle Ted had given it to me. Whenever we went to the store, mother always took me to the top floor over the store where the family used to live. She always pointed out in which room each sister or brother had lived, and where the other rooms were. She was always thrilled when she saw the original linoleum on the floor. Mother was a fabulous athlete and had hoped to teach physical education. However she hurt her knee playing basketball at Temple University and changed her major to early childhood education. She then went on to get a Master's Degree from Teacher's College, Columbia University. She was a wonderful teacher and had such rapport with all children. I have wonderful pictures of her from the Junior High School basketball team, the High School basketball team and the High School swimming team. I even have the bronze basketballs she used to wear around her neck. She won them each year for being on the team. Mother loved camp, both as a camper and as a counselor. I remember hearing such wonderful stories of Blue Mountain Camp. She was a fantastic swimmer and was a waterfront counselor for many years. She taught me to swim when I was 2 years old, with home movies to prove it! When Aunt Flo, Aunt Dot and Aunt Jule visited us in NJ, all 4 sisters sat around our kitchen table, smoking, drinking coffee, and talking. Dad used to tease them all about talking so much and never stopping I have a beautiful dark blue and gold crocheted purse that Aunt Jule made. I bet everyone has (or had) one. If I remember correctly, her needlework was lovely. I also have a wonderful recipe for hermit cookies from Aunt Jule, by far the best cookies I've every tasted. Aunt Flo and Uncle Al gave us many wonderful memories of Camp Smiley where Hannah, Fran, Annie, Edie, and I spent the summers of 1949 and 1950 together. We felt we were really at a regular sleepaway camp but what made it special is that family members would descend on us every weekend. They would bring us cookies, cakes, and surprises but more important to us, they would take over our chores for the weekend. The family from Bethlehem, because they were so close, came more often than anyone else. I don't think we'll forget how Uncle Ted got Vicky the cat down from the tree she had been stuck in for 2 days. He put a basket with food in it on top of a huge bamboo pole and kept poking her with it until she finally jumped into the basket and he brought her down. When we were in Junior High and High School, Hannah, Fran and I spent our winter and spring vacations in Bethlehem, where Aunt Dot fixed us up with the local boys. Harrison and Uncle Ben drove us wherever we needed to go. I'll never forget the time I was visiting Aunt Betty and Uncle Joe when I was a teenager and I was given a champagne cocktail for the first time. I had no idea what I was drinking and couldn't figure out why I got so dizzy. Mother died in 1973, just after her 64th birthday; she was the youngest but the third to die. I'll never forget Aunt Dot sitting in our living room in Englewood crying and saying "I used to tie red ribbons in Hilda's hair when she was a little girl. She was so cute". Aunt Dot came with Harry and Sheva to mother's funeral but they left her behind when they went home. They were so upset about mother that they forgot about Aunt Dot and they had to come back to get her. More Memories of my mother Hilda Mother was a senior in high school and Dad a freshman at Lehigh when they met at a dance at the Jewish Community Center in the fall of 1926. At that time there were dance cards to fill out and almost every dance had Arthur's name in it. She told me at the end of the evening, her feet were killing her because he couldn't dance very well and he stepped all over her. She went home and told her mother that she met such a nice "boy" but he couldn't dance. As we all know, most of the Coleman's were/are great dancers and this must have been a disappointment to her. However she stuck with him for over 9 years before they got married. He insisted that he make a living before they get married. So he finished college, medical school and internship finally in 1936 and they were married August 9th. Mother's scrap book has wonderful mementos. She pasted her big B basketball letter from Bethlehem High School on one of the pages. She has lots of odds and ends she collected that belonged to Dad, including an outdated NY Driver's License. But especially lovely is a valentine he sent her. And there are lots of telegrams from each one of her sisters and brothers when she graduated from Temple University in 1931. Judy Greenspan Richard Tunick's Memories (son of Hilda) Being one of the youngest cousins, with only Sheva being younger, as well as growing up in New Jersey, I don’t have huge numbers of memories of the Coleman family. However, while attending Lehigh from ’63-’68 while obtaining a BA and MA, I found myself closer to the family. I often walked down to the store to say hello. There was always Harrison, who would usually greet the customers and show them the merchandise. And if he was busy, Uncle Ted would break away from watching the stock market ticker on TV to wait on the customers! And Uncle Joe was always rushing around, always busy dealing with the business end in the office and often having a paper in his hand. Customers seemed to constantly be trickling into the store to give their payments. And Steve the worker was always there and always busy moving furniture, etc. Today furniture stores all seem to be carpeted. But I remember the Bethlehem store had just wooden floors. That’s why they were always able to move around the furniture. And then once in a while Uncle Ben would come in to kibbitz. A few times I was taken to the top of the store and shown where the family used to live. Of course once in a while I went over to Aunt Dot’s, and she was always talking about bridge and her bridge games, with Carol often reading a book. And at one point Aunt Dot opened up a small store on the south side of Bethlehem to sell some ties. I think they had come from her son Charles. I would often see Sheva and her parents Aunt Esther and Uncle Ben. I remember attending high holiday services with them freshman year and meeting Aunt Esther’s nephew Werner Rothschild while walking to Temple. Because of this meeting, I spent 3 summers working as a swim counselor at his New Hampshire camp. Note: when I started coaching girls soccer in 1987 at the high school I teach at, I would occasionally have Werner as a ref! I also had Sheva come and join me at some of the Lehigh parties. I remember visiting Aunt Jane and Uncle Ted. It seems Jeffrey was always going in and out. And if Jeffrey wasn’t there, they never seemed to know where he was. It seemed to me there was always such turmoil there! I didn’t get my first car until the spring of my junior year. In order to pick up a date, I asked to borrow Harrison and Shirley’s VW bug a couple of times. I remember enjoying driving the car. A few years before that I remember visiting Uncle Ted, Aunt Jane, and Jeffrey. I had gotten my drivers license within the year. So Jeffrey let me drive his Corvette. At one point I let out the clutch too fast and also was not used to the power of the car. So we did a 180 degree spin. Boy were both Jeffrey and I surprised! No harm done though, since there was no traffic around. I also remember Aunt Jule driving her old car. It had very soft seats and a big steering wheel. I was impressed she could drive while looking under the steering wheel! I remember I was often told Uncle Francis drove an ambulance in World War I. I also remember being very impressed that Uncle Francis was not bald at his age but had such a full head of hair that was partially gray! As a child I remember taking the passenger train to Bethlehem. We must have started out at Penn Station in New York City, but I remember arriving in Bethlehem. I also remember one time going to Uncle Joe and Aunt Betty’s house where I admired a note pad. So Aunt Betty gave it to me. Amazing what impresses a child and what we remember years later! About once a month Harrison and Shirley would stop by our house in New Jersey when Harrison came to be treated by a dermatologist. When I walked home from school and I saw that white 1954 Mercury convertible, I knew who was there. I also looked forward to having Uncle Chase and Aunt Dot visit, for I would go into the back yard, put on my baseball mitt and play catch with Uncle Chase. Also visiting occasionally were Aunt Flo and Uncle Al. I was always impressed by the change in my mother when she saw her sister Flo. My mother became so much more animated and happy during the visit. They seemed to gossip like little girls. You could sense the sisterly bond between them, possibly due to their closeness in age. And where was Uncle Al during all this? He was sitting down and reading a book from my parent’s bookshelves. I also remember Uncle Al giving me some junior high school social studies books. Since Aunt Rae had passed away before I was born, I did not know her. But we often saw Bernice and her family and Trudy and her family since they didn’t live too far away. Bernice and Harry were always so busy in their gift store in New Rochelle, N.Y. And Trudy and Morty were always friendly. And of course I was often shown the Beth Sholom Temple right on the edge of the campus where my father, while attending Lehigh, met this "townie" Hilda!! Richard Tunick |