Ruth Blanche Lewengrub's Obituary
Ruth Blanche Lewengrub, 86 of Boca Raton FL formerly of Tamarac, FL passed away January 15, 2025. Beloved wife of the late Bert Lewengrub; loving mother of Wendy (Michael) Ross and Joanne (Dan) Hurwitz; dear sister of the late Judy McGlaughlin; cherished grandmother of Brianna Hurwitz, Shannon Ross, Rebecca Van Hulst and McKenna Ross; adored great-grandmother of Wes Van Hulst; daughter of the late Lewis Kerner and Sarah Kerner; daughter-in-law of the late Rose and Joel Lewengrub.
She was born in the Bronx of first generation immigrant parents. She met the love of her life on the front stoop of her apartment building.
She was humble but smart. She skipped a grade and eventually became a kindergarten teacher, then raised a family, then her love of education led her to becoming a librarian as she supported herself after her husband died way too early. She survived breast cancer twice. She was affectionately known by her grandchildren as grandma and Moppa. She was genuine and honest, open minded, and unprejudiced in an era when so many others weren’t. She was a model citizen. —That was our mom.
It has been a long slow journey as we watched things being taken away from her. First her drivers license that she so determined and proud got in her 30s, then her physical mobility , and an apartment she proudly bought on her own and had just paid off only to lose it to the immobility of arthritis and age, and finally her memory that she prided herself in still having when all else was gone. All her independence slipped away. Along with it came anger then an ignorant bliss and we got our sweet mom back that we knew. But her successes didn’t slip away.
People should know what a wonderful mom she was. She was a mom who taught us empathy - a love for everyone. She gave us a love of art and a sense of adventure with her eagerness to know the world. She didn’t get to travel abroad as much as she’d have liked, but she went places through the books she read. She taught us perseverance, loyalty, and reliability. We will remember her acceptance of all people, good sense of direction, her tiny cursive handwriting, trips to New York City to go to the dentist then visits to Rockefeller Center and the train ride home with a trinket from the jewelry exchange afterwards, pizza and bowling birthday parties, readings of Madeline to our friends at our birthday parties while she got the cake ready, boating with our dad and our dog Daphne, and picnic dinners at Greenwich point with a bucket of Kentucky Fried Chicken and cold slaw as we played with friends on the shore.
For her children, if you had to learn by example, these early memories molded what it meant to be a wonderful mom. We’ll always think of her when we see denim, pewter figurines, tiger eye and carnelian gems, Life Saver mints, needlepoint, and crumb cake. She loved to hum and would always call us to make sure we were up on what was going on in the world. She liked to read so very much and tell funny stories of people who came into her library looking for certain books but would mangle the title in a funny way. With her occasional deadpan humor she simply reiterated to her granddaughter who was done with textbooks and struggling to get through a pleasure book, “There’s no obligation to keep going. It’s meant to be fun!” Her success, achievement, or power were not grandiose but to us and those who knew her, she was the true meaning of humanity. In our mind she was and still is our world. Always in our thoughts you are never alone or forgotten. Finally rest in peace, sweet mama! We love you.
In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Arthritis Foundation or the American Cancer Society. Services will be held in New York. Arrangements by Levitt Weinstein Blasberg Rubin Zilbert (305) 932-2700.
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