Alan M. Wolk

A lifelong resident of the Cleveland area, Mr. Wolk was the longtime law director of the city of University Heights and served many years as a labor arbitrator throughout Ohio and in nearby states. He was active in politics as the founding president of the University Heights Democratic Club and a sometime candidate for public office, supporting progressive causes throughout his life.

Alan Murray Wolk was born in Cleveland on March 17, 1932, and never failed to wear a touch of green on his birthday, often joking that the St. Patrick’s Day parade in Cleveland was held in his honor. His parents, Jean (nee Mintz) and Sam Wolk, immigrants from Latvia, moved the family to Washington in 1935 where his father, a carpenter, was able to find work in the Depression, including helping with a renovation of the Washington Monument. It was there that Mr. Wolk contracted polio and spent weeks in a hospital, where according to family legend he was visited by First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt. The newspaper clipping verifying the visit has yet to be located.

Polio atrophied his right leg below the knee but did nothing to diminish his enthusiasm for sports, especially baseball and basketball. He was guided by his older brother, Melvin, to act as if he had no disability, and he was loath to acknowledge one. In later years he was known around the neighborhood on Fenwick as “Coach Wolk” for his volunteer efforts in the Tris Speaker baseball league and other team sports. The six-foot-four-inch coach would always be sure to remind young players to “follow through,” no matter the sport.

After attending John Adams High School, which he loved, the family moved again, and he graduated from Cleveland Heights High. He attended Ohio State University and Fenn College (now Cleveland State), before returning to Ohio State for law school and passing the bar with high marks at age 23, even though, by his own account, he never did quite get the hang of torts. A lifelong learner, he loved the law and continued to study all kinds, including Talmudic scholars and the Constitutional law. Although he never was elected to the bench, he occasionally sat as an acting judge in Shaker Heights Municipal Court and served as a neutral arbitrator in more than 500 labor disputes. He was a fellow in the Cleveland Academy of Trial Attorneys, having tried some 60 jury trials.

In his mid-20s, he attended a party where the former Phyllis Grossberg said hello to him. Although she had to remind him that they had met previously, he quickly came to his senses, and soon they were engaged – after “only two dates,” he later boasted. They married at Fairmount Temple on Dec. 1, 1957, and took a driving honeymoon to New York and Washington, D.C. Three sons soon followed – Martin, Jeffrey, and Scott – along with annual summer vacations in Eastern locales such as Cape Cod, and lakes Chautauqua and Winnipesaukee.

The most memorable trip by far was the 1972 cross-country expedition in a Plymouth “Wolkswagon,” outfitted with a wooden, rooftop luggage carrier handcrafted by Wolk Builders, and trailing a fifth-wheel popup tent that was used on approximately six of the trip’s 45 nights.

A natural leader, Mr. Wolk served as law director from 1980 to 1997 and helped guide University Heights on issues including accessibility, environmental protection, and gun control, as well as commercial development of the south Taylor Road area.

In private practice, he helped families and small businesses, answering phone calls at any hour, and never at a loss for words of advice. He was active in many legal groups including the Cuyahoga County Bar Association, where he served as executive director and president and was awarded the very selective Presidents’ Award. He was also past master of the Golden Square Masonic Lodge. In recent years, he lived at R.H. Myers Apartments on the Menorah Park campus, where he managed the commissary and served as president of the tenants association.

Mr. Wolk was a founding member of Brith Emeth Temple, and later served on the board of Temple Emanu El, where he remained a member.

He is survived by his wife of 63 years, Phyllis Grossberg Wolk, as well as his three sons; grandchildren Sam, Eli, Sylvia, and Leah Wolk; daughters-in-law Liz Wolk and Nancy Wolk; his brother, Melvin; brother-in-law Dave Richman; sister-in-law Sunni Abelman; and nieces and nephews. He was predeceased by his younger sister, Renee Wolk Richman. In his later years, he was lovingly cared for by a team of nurses led by Janet Bubui.

Funeral services will be held at Berkowitz-Kumin-Bookatz Memorial Chapel, 1985 S. Taylor Rd., Cleveland Hts. on Monday, March 15 at 2 pm.

Private interment for family only will follow at Hillcrest Memorial Park.

In lieu of flowers, contributions can be made to Hospice of the Western Reserve.

Fond memories and expressions of sympathy may be shared at www.bkbmc.com for the Wolk family.