ERWIN WEISZMANN

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ERWIN WEISZMANN Peacefully, with his family by his side, Erwin Weiszmann P. Eng. passed away on October 27, 2011 at the Victoria General Hospital. Erwin is survived by his beloved wife of 58 years, Judith, his children, grandchildren, a niece, cousins in Budapest, Hungary and Philadelphia. Erwin's funeral service was held at the Shaarey Zedek Synagogue on October 30, followed by interment at Shaarey Zedek Cemetery. The service was performed by cherished, longtime family friend Rabbi Neil Rose. Erwin was born on September 14, 1923 in Budapest, Hungary. He was predeceased by his parents Jeno and Elizabeth and his younger sister Katalin. Erwin spoke English, German, and Italian in addition to his native Hungarian. He graduated from high school summa cum laude . However as a Jew he was not allowed to attend university until after the war. He became an apprentice fine mechanic and in 1943 and became a journeyman fine mechanic. Erwin managed to get a Swedish Schutzpass from the Wallenberg Department at the Swedish Embassy. These papers helped him to survive the Holocaust. Erwin also managed to obtain protective papers for his mother, but sadly, his father Jeno had already been rounded up, deported and murdered enroute to the Bergen Belsen extermination camp. After the liberation of Europe, Erwin tragically discovered that several dozen of his relatives including his beloved 80 year old grandmother, aunts, uncles and even numerous infant cousins. were murdered in Auschwitz. These losses left him with wounds that endured to the end of his life. Following the war, Erwin enrolled at the Josef Nador Technical University of Budapest. Having lost his father during the Holocaust, Erwin became the sole breadwinner for his family at the age of 22 by tending the family insurance business late into the evenings while attending university during the day. During the summer of 1948, Erwin volunteered to be the director of a Jewish summer camp. Most of the campers were Holocaust survivor orphans. He met his best friend, future wife and business partner, Judith Kopstein there. Erwin received his degree in Civil Engineering from the Josef Nador Technical University of Budapest, Hungary in 1949. He worked as a structural design engineer and later as a department head at the Industrial Building Design Institute in Budapest. He received several awards for his outstanding work there. In 1953, during Hungary's darkest Stalinist days, Erwin and Judith defied the Communist regime and were secretly married by a Rabbi in a synagogue. They escaped from Hungary together after the failed Hungarian revolution in 1956. As refugees, Erwin and Judith promptly found engineering jobs in Austria. While life was good in the spectacular Tyrolean Alps, Erwin and Judith decided that the iron curtain was much too close for comfort. They wished to start a new life in a democratic, English speaking country. Canada accepted them as refugees in 1957. In August 1957, Erwin and Judith arrived in Montreal with two backpacks and a grand total of $70 between them! Erwin's backpack contained his slide rule, a change of underwear, his prayer book, and his tallis and tefillin given to him by his father on the occasion of his bar mitzvah. After a short stint in Montreal, Erwin landed a job as a design engineer with Winnipeg Hydro. In 1959, Erwin established Weiszmann and Associates Consulting Engineers in partnership with Judith. They moonlighted in the evenings for a few years after their day jobs in order to get the business on a firm footing. The business was a very vibrant part of the whole family's life. Erwin's children Ann and Paul proudly worked on and off for Weiszmann and Associates from a very young age. Erwin became a proud Canadian citizen in 1963. In 1965, Erwin left Hydro to devote all his time to their consulting practice. Over the course of the next 48 years, Erwin and Judith designed a large variety of building structures ranging from schools, banks, community centers, nursing homes, nursing stations, airplane hangars, sports arenas, industrial buildings, apartment blocks, churches and synagogues. They provided consulting engineering services for lawyers and investors and were involved in a wide range of specialized engineering works. Erwin lectured on safe construction practices to members of the construction industry. He was commissioned to write a handbook for the building of wood grain elevators. Erwin was an active member of the Association of Professional Engineers and Geologists of Manitoba for 49 years. He served on the Advocacy and Member Services Committee and on the Consulting Engineers Committee for 34 years. For a number of years he chaired the Consulting Engineers Committee and represented it at the national forum in Ottawa. In 2000, Erwin received his golden engineering degree from the Technical University of Budapest for his 50 years of outstanding engineering work. The Association of Professional Engineers and Geologists of Manitoba granted Erwin an honorary life membership in 2006. In 2009, Erwin became a fellow of Engineers Canada. He was greatly honored to have been recognized by his peers for his service to the engineering profession. Erwin was a true family man. He financially assisted his mother, in-laws and grandmother-in- law in order that they be able to immigrate to Canada. Erwin took great pleasure in the accomplishments of his children and grandsons. His grandsons Gabriel and Adrian affectionately referred to him as Papapa . Erwin was a very charitable man. He was always willing to assist newcomer engineers and technicians to settle into practicing their professions. Erwin was a believer in educating future generations about the devastating effects of the Holocaust. He volunteered his time for many years to high schools and universities lecturing on the Holocaust. After 42 years of a busy engineering practice, Erwin and Judith retired in 2007. They spent many winters enjoying the beauty and climate of Hawaii. Erwin was a lover of hard work, he truly enjoyed being an engineer and it defined him. He loved to travel, to swim and to take care of the small forest that he and Judith planted in their yard. He was an avid reader and fan of classical music and opera. Despite many health challenges in his later years, Erwin was truly the eternal optimist, seeing the positive side of every situation. His strong will to live helped him to survive a serious heart attack, quintuple bypass surgery and a debilitating stroke after which he learned to speak and swallow again. Together, the family joyously celebrated Erwin's 88th birthday a few short weeks ago. Sadly, Erwin succumbed to congestive heart failure on October 27 after fighting this condition for several months. His determination, his steadfast focus on the positive and his spirit will continue to be an inspiration to all those that knew him. He will be greatly missed. Among the pallbearers was his son in law Daniel Brodsky. Honorary pallbearers were Henry Haak, Dr. Stephen Szirom, Marcel Ross, Dr. Peter Siegler, Tibor Krausz, Dr. Gary Cohen, David Cohen, Burton Bass, Paul Barsony and Ron Polinsky. The family would like to express their gratitude to Dr. Brian Sharkey, Debbie, Ivy, Faustina, Norman, Nancy, Sonya, Hanna, Frank, Eva, Pam, Cecile, Vadim, Edith, Melody, Barbara and Theresa on 4 north at the Victoria General Hospital for their unending energy, encouragement and kindness. Flowers are gratefully declined, memorials or donations may be sent to the Jewish Family and Child Service of Winnipeg or the Heart and Stroke Foundation.

As published in Winnipeg Free Press on Nov 05, 2011