ESTHER NISENHOLT

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ESTHER NISENHOLT August 4, 1924 - October 29, 2012 It is with sorrow that the family of Esther Nisenholt announces her sudden passing. She was born Esther Globerman in Pinsk, Poland in 1924, and immigrated to Canada with her mother and brother to join her father in Winnipeg when she was three years old. Her extended family in Poland were known to her only in pictures and stories, as those that stayed in Pinsk were lost during the War. Esther grew up in Winnipeg's north end, one of four siblings, and attended St. John's Tech, going dutifully to work upon graduation to help support her family. In 1949, she married Irv Nisenholt and was welcomed into his warm, good-hearted family. She and Irv raised three children in West Kildonan. For about 40 years beginning in the early 1960s the family spent summers at a cottage on Seventh Avenue in Winnipeg Beach. She liked nothing better than falling asleep there under a window open to the evening breezes off the lake. She had a lifelong regret at not having the opportunity to pursue higher education, but sustained an interest in learning throughout her life. In the early 1970s, she went back to work as the archivist at the Jewish Historical Society of Western Canada, as it was then known. She collected oral history, gathering recollections from an older generation of Jewish immigrants who often spoke only Yiddish, her first language. As well, she catalogued documents, letters and photographs, responded to inquiries from the community, and worked on a number of exhibits that the JHS undertook. After 17 years Esther retired, and she and Irv moved to the south end where they lived close to her siblings. Irv predeceased her in 2004, and the siblings and their families offered wonderful support. Throughout her life she was a regular goer to the MTC and a proud cheerleader for it. Retirement gave her the opportunity to add the ballet and the symphony to her calendar. She joined a book club, took up bridge and was always available for a scrabble match. She took a keen interest in the stories of names and in word derivations and learning some factoid in this domain never failed to animate her. Her health began to fail noticeably in the summer of 2010, but she maintained a calm and graceful demeanor that belied her decline. In the past year, a total stranger approached her in the hallway of the Health Sciences Centre and told her, You are the quintessence of aging gracefully. Such unsolicited compliments often came her way and buoyed her spirits. She remained sharp and engaged until the last. She will be sorely missed by her children Mark (Mariana Maguire), Judy (Ethan Poskanzer) and Susie, her grandchildren, Isaac, Michael, Daniel, Sarah and Zoe, her surviving siblings Nina Chisvin (Allan) and Abe Globerman (Naomi), her sister-in-law, Pauline Laimon, her devoted nieces and nephews, and her good friends. She was predeceased by her brother Morley M. Globerman in 2008. The family thanks the attentive staff at the Shaftesbury and wishes to cite Dr. Ade Olujohungbe and Dr. Larry Reynolds for their special kindness. Donations can be made to the Jewish Heritage Centre of Western Canada or the Canadian Museum for Human Rights.

As published in Winnipeg Free Press on Nov 24, 2012