TOVA (GITA) YURMAN (MEISELMAN)

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TOVA (GITA) YURMAN

Tova Yurman (nee Meiselman) passed away peacefully at Simkin Centre on September 24, 2019, after suffering from dementia for a lengthy period of time. Her husband, Sam (Shlomo) Yurman visited daily until his death four and a half years ago and her son, Ron was by her side day after day.
She is survived by her son, Ron Yurman (Anita Wortzman), granddaughters, Lexie and Haley Yurman, sister-in-law, Hedva Yurman, and her many nieces, nephews, grandnieces and grandnephews in Canada and Israel.
Tova was born in 1928 in Chernovitz, Romania. Her first 13 years were happy, living with her parents, Chana and Aryeh Meiselman, older brother Favel (Phillip) and older sister, Heny. In 1941 all that changed. The Jews in her town were taken from their homes and forced into a German work camp. Her brother Favel fled to Russia. Tova, Heny and their parents stuck together and undertook the forced march from their home to a German camp. Chana and Aryeh did not survive. Tova and Heny ended up in a camp in the Transnistria area. They survived by knitting socks and gloves for the German army. This allowed them to get scraps of extra food to survive their three year internment. In 1945, Tova and Heny were liberated. They were malnourished and Tova had loss of vision in one eye, among other ailments. They journeyed back to Chernovitz to look for their brother and check on the family home. Favel was not to be found and their home had been overtaken by the communist regime. Tova then travelled to Appledoorn Holland, as part of a group of 500 Jewish children recovering from wartime atrocities. At 17, she was a leader for the group, caring for the younger children. Tova and Heny then chose to immigrate to Israel to start a new life.
Tova quickly learned Hebrew and served in the Israeli Air Force. After the 1948 War of Independence, Tova got a job as an IBM keypunch operator for El Al airlines. In December of 1954, she travelled to Winnipeg to meet family. In January, 1955 Sam and Tova were married and settled in Winnipeg. She took English lessons and attended business college. She got a job at Great West Life. Tova became an important part of the Yurman family. She was described by her nieces and nephew as the "...hip, cool, fun aunt".
Tova gave birth to a healthy baby girl named Chana, after her mother. Chana was diagnosed with Tay-Sachs disease and passed away at 18 months. Sam and Tova were blessed with a second child - Ron. Despite all of the past tragedies in Tova's life - losing her parents, the damage to her psyche of the war and the loss of her first child, Tova lived to enjoy life and care for her family. She was a creative artist who expressed herself through oil painting, pillow lace, knitting, baking and sculpting. In the late 1960s, to Tova's joy, her brother Favel was located in Russia and immigrated to Israel with his family until he moved to South Africa.
Sam, Tova and Ron eventually moved to Israel in 1972. She nurtured a beautiful garden with fruit trees, flowers, pecans and lemon trees. Many relatives and friends from Winnipeg would visit and stay at the house in Israel with Sam and Tova and experienced her food, her garden and art on every wall.
In 1990, the Gulf War broke out and scud missile attacks on Israel were fired close to where Sam and Tova lived. They were issued gas masks and were on high alert. This period of fear seemed to trigger Tova's mental decline.
By 1995, Tova had two granddaughters in Winnipeg. Tova and Sam flew to Winnipeg regularly to visit. In 2005, they moved to Winnipeg full time. Tova connected with her grandchildren through art and baking. She expressed her love through pillow lace - creating original designs, including an Israeli piece that she bestowed on the President of Israel, Ezer Weizman. Tova did not speak about her time during the war. She was not just a survivor, she was resilient and had an unparalleled zest for life. Notwithstanding the devastating loss of her parents, her brother, her home, and her daughter, she had a drive for life and trying new things that defies explanation. She learned new languages, new skills, created art and made friendships wherever she went. There was nothing she would not do for friends and family and she was a lot of fun. This is the way we will remember her.
The family thanks the staff at the Simkin Centre (the second floor) for the compassionate care provided to Tova and the family. Thank-you to Nila who was by Tova's side caring for her daily.
A graveside service was held at Shaarey Zedek Cemetery on September 26, 2019. Pallbearers were Lexie Yurman, Haley Yurman, Isaac Thau, Reuben Potash, Michael Eleff and Jason Wortzman. The family thanks Rabbi Mass for his kind words.
If desired, donations in Tova's memory may be made to the Lexie and Haley Yurman Fund at the Jewish Foundation of Manitoba.

As published in Winnipeg Free Press on Oct 05, 2019