Edward Golove

Edward Golove, (99), passed away Sunday, April 10, at the Richard Rosenthal Hospice in Stamford of natural causes. He was born at home as Yitzchok (Isadore) Golove July 29, 1911, on the Lower East Side of New York City to Harry and Rose Peselnick Golove. His native tongue was Yiddish, learning English only when he entered kindergarten. He was raised during his formative years in Woodbine, Cape May County, New Jersey, a Baron de Hirsch Jewish settlement founded in 1891and believed to be the first new Jewish-governed municipality since the destruction of the second Jewish Temple in Jerusalem in 70,C.E., the second being Tel Aviv, Israel (1909).

He graduated from Woodbine HS (’28), where he was an outstanding student and centerfielder on the WHS baseball team, while also working in town for the U.S. Post Office, at a local grocery store and at a bowling alley … simultaneously. As a young adult, he returned to New York City where he worked as a clerk for the British Railways while attending the City College of New York at night. He also volunteered in the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC), a New Deal Federal organization that put him to work in Vermont . In the middle 1930s, he returned to the U.S. Post Office in New York City as a clerk while continuing in school.

In 1936, he married Juliet Saperstein, and settled in the Flatbush section of Brooklyn . In 1945, when Juliet’s father passed away, Ed left the Post Office to run his father-in-law’s garment center business, together with his brother-in-law. In 1950, Juliet, their two children and he moved to Floral Park, LI, NY, where a third child was later born. There, they belonged to the Bellerose Jewish Center, where he was a Vice President of the Men’s Club. In 1956, he left the business and returned to the Post Office, where he held many supervisory positions. In 1973, his beloved Juliet passed away, and he never remarried. He retired in 1976 as the New York City Post Office’s supervisor of human resources systems auditing. He moved to Stamford in 1978 to be with his children and grandchildren who had settled in the area.

Mr. Golove was a member of and volunteer at Stamford’s Congregation Agudath Sholom and later was a member of Temple Beth El. He was a member of the Jewish Community Center (JCC), where he volunteered in the Senior Adult Department. He was a member of the Jewish Historical Society (JHS) of Lower Fairfield County and was the first librarian and builder of the Judaica library that was re-established in the new JCC by the Holocaust Memorial Committee of B’nai Brith and has been owned/operated by the JHS since 1995. He was a participant in the Jewish Community Endowment Fund. He was also a member of a number of national Jewish, postal worker and U. S. government employee organizations. He was a lifelong New York Yankees baseball fan and could be found (and heard) at every Little League, Babe Ruth League or high school baseball, softball or field hockey game (or any other activity for that matter) that included his grandchildren and that he could get to (he drove until he was 91).

Ed, as he preferred to be known, is survived is by his son Fred (Sandy) Golove and daughter Rebecca (Andrew) Lehrfeld of Stamford, and his daughter Nancy (Martin) Diamond of Greenwich. His nine grandchildren were the envy of all because they had the widely acknowledged most wonderful grandpa of all. He is survived by his grandchildren in New Jersey: Sharon (Golove) (Steven) Ritz of Cherry Hill, Seth Diamond of New Milford and Jonathan Lehrfeld of Fairview; in New York: Robert (Beth) Golove of Syosset; and in Connecticut, Jessica (Golove) (Jonathan) Bradley , Daniel Golove and Traci Lehrfeld of Stamford, Michael Golove of Trumbull; and, Greg (Stephanie) Diamond of Norwalk. He is also survived by eight great grandchildren who adored him as Zayde: Adam, Joshua and Noah Ritz, Austin and Dawson Golove, Samantha and Grant Bradley and Nolan Diamond, and by a sister-in-law and many nieces, nephews and grand and great grand nieces and nephews. He is also survived by his long time very dedicated aide, Mzia Tsalugelashvili, and others.

In addition to his parents and wife, Ed was predeceased by his sisters Sarah Golove and Yetta Golove, his brother Joe (Molly) Golove and his brothers-in-law and other sisters-in-law..

Ed went through life as a very intelligent, humble, single-minded giver, always ready to help anybody, often before they even realized that they needed help. His major shortcoming was his unwillingness to receive, not even in return. Above all, Ed was a model of high integrity, caring and sweetness.

A funeral service will be held at 11:30 a.m., Monday, April 11, at Temple Beth El, 350 Roxbury Road, Stamford, followed by interment alongside his wife and mother at Mount Hebron Cemetery in Flushing, NY. The family will observe Shiva at the home of Rebecca and Andrew Lehrfeld from after interment Monday, all day and evening Tuesday through Thursday and daytime Friday. Services will be conducted at 7:00 p.m. each night.

Memorial donations may be made to Temple Beth El, the Jewish Historical Society of Lower Fairfield County or Richard Rosenthal Hospice, all in Stamford, or to the charity of one’s choice.

Arrangements are by Leo P. Gallagher & Son Funeral Home 2900 Summer Street, Stamford, CT 06905. For further information please visit our website www.leopgallagherstamford.com