MORLEY ZELIG HERMAN

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MORLEY ZELIG HERMAN (May 10, 1941 - November 21, 2007) I did it my way On November 21, 2007 Morley Zelig Herman (son of Clara and Saul Herman, deceased) prematurely and suddenly passed away at age 66. He had a well-attended graveside funeral on November 23, 2007 led by Rabbi Lander at the Rosh Pina Memorial Cemetery. Others have honoured his memory through stories about him, condolences and charitable donations. Morley was a gifted child with an exceptional vocabulary, memory, analytic skills and an insatiable curiosity. As a child and adolescent, Morley participated in team sports (football, baseball and basketball), attended boy scouts, acted in school plays, was the only one in his family who could swim and had a successful Free Press paper route which won him a trip to Chicago. Being the first male grandchild, Morley had a special place in the hearts of his paternal grandparents, Israel and Anne Herman. His younger brother Arney (deceased), younger sister Gloria Mendelson (nee Herman) and younger cousins who grew up next door, Andrea Hollenberg and Narvey Hollenberg (deceased) all admired Morley for his intelligence. In his early teens Morley was diagnosed with schizophrenia and paranoia. Unfortunately in the 1950s our knowledge of mental illness was still in the dark ages. Morley was involuntarily institutionalized and given the full range of treatments of the day. After seven years he was finally released at age 21 and never looked back. Morley often referred to this period of his life as his holocaust . Morley spent the rest of his life trying to overcome the effects of his illness and treatment, which in his mind became indistinguishable. He refused all conventional medical help in which he had lost faith. Without treatment, he persevered to achieve a normal existence returning to high school as a young adult and eventually, obtaining a university degree. Unfortunately, Morley still led a lonely, isolated and impoverished existence. His non-conformist, uncompromising, contrarian personality and lifestyle prevented him from having the social contact and love that he craved. Happily in later years Morley mellowed. His innate sense of humour and clever wit surfaced, endearing him to others. He became an avid bridge player which earned him recognition and respect. As a result of bridge he learned how to use a computer, travelled to bridge tournaments and met many intelligent and stimulating people, some of whom were also kind and perceptive enough to see beyond the externals and appreciate him for what he truly was. After all, Morley was the first to admit that he was socially challenged . The synagogue was always a place of refuge in Morley's life. For many years, Morley attended the Shaarey Zedik Synagogue on a regular weekly basis and for the past four and one-half years, did not miss a single Torah class of Rabbi Pinsker, to which he made a substantial contribution. Unfortunately, like so many others in our society, Morley developed diabetes in his senior years which progressed to insulin dependence. Given his many other challenges, it was not surprising that Morley was finally overcome by this ravaging disease due to cardiovascular failure. Morley will be deeply and sadly missed by his closest surviving family; sister Gloria Mendelson (Earl Simmons), cousins, Andrea Hollenberg and Gwen Goldberg; his loyal friends, guardian angels and caregivers especially, Len Doerksen, Max Serlin, Betty Hayes, Denise Desrocher, Sharon Gray, Joan Sinder, Sid Segel, Sir Robert Stevenson, Jack Webb, Marie Hawash, Judy Plotkin (Jewish Child and Family Services) and Michelle Ranville (Age and Opportunity). Special acknowledgement must be given to Narvey Hollenberg, who passed away last year, for his unconditional affection and moral support, whenever Morley needed it. Gloria would also like to thank various organizations who assisted Morley in some way especially, the Tuxedo Bridge Club, the Shaarey Zedick Synagogue, the Jewish Community Centre and B M Land Co. (Walter Parfeniuk and Wally Ruban), for giving Morley a place to be, a community and a place to live. There were others, too numerous to mention, who extended small mitzvahs or mercies to Morley such as, giving him car rides, food, clothes, furniture, the use of their phone, T.V. or computer, storage space, information, advice or just plain simple human interaction. Morley is also survived by his sister-in-law, Wipapan Herman and two nieces, Maneeya Herman and Manita Herman of Bangkok, Thailand and cousins, Judy Shane, Gloria Smith and Tashie Pawer of Vancouver, BC and and Barnie Shane of Los Angeles, CA. Farewell Morley! We love you and miss you. You were always true to yourself and succeeded in doing it your way.

As published in Winnipeg Free Press on Jan 26, 2008