Leonid Becker

Leonid was known for his unwavering honesty, steadfast loyalty, analytical thinking, and love of life, his family, and his many friends. He was born in Cherkasy, Ukraine (former Soviet Union) in 1938, and shortly thereafter, WWII had begun and his father Grigory was deployed to the front lines, where he was killed in combat soon after, leaving his mother to raise Leonid “Lenya” and his younger brother as a single mom.

When the war had come to an end, in 1945, little Lenya and his family returned to Cherkasy from evacuation, and he was able to start primary school. Life after the destruction of war was undeniably hard, but Leonid enjoyed living in the quiet city of Cherkasy, by the shore of the great river Dnieper, where he could swim whenever he wanted. Not before long, Lenya also discovered the endlessly fascinating game of chess, which became his greatest passion for many years thereafter, eventually culminating in his earning of the title of Master of Chess.

After graduating from high school with a medal for his academic achievements, Lenya decided to pursue his interests in math and physics, and went to Kharkov, Ukraine, to study at the Kharkov Polytechnical Institute as an electrical engineer. At the Institute, he continued to play chess, now taking part in domestic, country-wide, and international competitions and championships, while representing his school, and later his workplaces as well.

Kharkov was known for its lively chess scene, and Lenya had made many friends through this connection; friendships that he maintained even after leaving the Soviet Union for the United States in 1989. His friends adored him for his good nature, intelligence, kindness, and deep loyalty. Leonid's phenomenal memory for numbers and facts was the stuff of legends, and the bridge club he started with his friends included the best players in town.

In Kharkov, Leonid also met his future wife, beautiful Anna, a fellow student at the Polytechnical Institute, and they were married not long after. Together, they raised three children, and Leonid was always thrilled to share all his passions with them, be it playing chess, solving math problems, reading books, or taking a suburban train to the woods of the countryside for mushroom foraging.

Leonid loved food and was always game to experiment in the kitchen with exotic recipes passed to him by a friend or a colleague at work. At the end of every summer, he organized the whole family to do a big canning project where everyone pitched in for a full day of canning cucumbers and tomatoes to put up in preparation for a long cold winter.

Photography became another one of his many interests, and once a month, the family bathroom was turned into a darkroom for developing and printing the many photos that he had snapped around town.

After moving to the United States with his family, Leonid eventually found a job as an electrical engineer, and continued a career he always loved, until retiring at the age of 80 years old. Together with his wife, Anna, he enjoyed traveling all over the United States, as well as Europe and Mexico.

Leonid is survived by his wife Anna, their children Gennady, Elina, and Victoria, his grandchildren Veronika, Sasha, and Mila, and his brother Savely “Shurik.”

Leonid will be forever in our hearts.