Toby Karan's Obituary
Toby Karan, a long-time resident of NY, and for the past almost 30 years Florida, died at home in her sleep, on December 22, 2017, at the age of 93.
Toby was the loving and compassionate matriarch of her family. She brought so much energy and enthusiasm to everything she did and had a very positive impact on all whom she came in contact with.
She raised a beautiful family and had a very special relationship with each of her 6 grandchildren as well as her 8 great grandchildren. She was the consummate Jewish mother, instilling Yiddishkeit in her entire family. Her Passover seders were truly inspirational and were the highlight of the year for the family.
When it comes to staying in touch, no one did it better than Toby. She sent out over 150 cards every year to her family and friends for holidays, birthdays, anniversaries and more for over 70 years. She was also very passionate about the Democratic party, and concerned about the treatment of those less fortunate. When it came to cooking, she had no equal. Her chocolate cake was dearly loved by all, and no one was able to replicate it to the perfection that she did. Toby loved to travel, paint and going to the theatre and lectures. She was also an interior designer, and her childrens’ homes reflect that.
She was preceded in death by her first husband, Arthur Feldman, her second husband, Leo Karan, and her very close companion, Al Schnell.
Toby is survived by her brother, William Blum; her children and their spouses, Gary and Judy Feldman, David and Dede Feldman, Helene and Larry Schwartz and David Karan and Roberta Tolan; her grandchildren and their spouses, Adam and Kate Feldman, Eden and Bret Feldman, Matthew and Kirstin Feldman, Brad and Vanessa Feldman, Andrew and Dana Schwartz and, Michael and Aly Schwartz; and her great grandchildren, Hunter and Sidney, Josh, Emma and Ben, Kira and Bryce and Bianca.
Toby felt it was important to share with her family and friends what she learned in her life so over the past few years we recorded her memoir and put a lot of the content up on a website: https://sites.google.com/site/tobysmemoirs/home. It’s still a work in progress, especially the My Life navigation, but you might find some of the content interesting.
A memorial service will be held on Sunday, December 24, 2017 at 12:00 at Sinai Chapels, 162-05 Horace Harding Expwy, Fresh Meadows, NY 11365. A small graveside service will follow at Mount Ararat Cemetery:
1165 Route 109, Lindenhurst, NY 11757.
In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be contributed to Hadassah (http://www.hadassah.org) .
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