Ann R Meltzer

Ann Rae Meltzer (nee Cohn) beloved daughter, mother, grandmother, great-grandmother, great-great-grandmother, and member of the greatest generation, was born in Chicago on June 17th, 1924, to Rosa (Rivka) Glassman (a seamstress) and Harry (Herschel) Cohn (a silk-spotter), immigrants from Odessa, Ukraine. Ann was the youngest of 6 siblings, Ben, Dolly, Sally, Eva, and Lakie, with whom she shared many adventures roaming the city, seeing movies (which would become a life-long passion), and buying “polly (sunflower) seeds” and coca colas. Ann was always a great beauty with a petite stature, copper-flame colored hair, and robin’s egg blue eyes.

When Ann was almost 17, on one of her outings with Lakie, they dipped in to the billiard hall attached to her parents’ dry-cleaning shop for a Coke, and she first laid eyes on the love of her life, Bernie. “See that guy with the big biceps?”, she told Lakie, “I’m going to marry him.” Bernard Meltzer and Ann Rae Cohn eloped in 1941 and were blessed with three daughters, Sandra Joyce (James A. Gannon), Pamela (James M. Schemke) and Iris (James Mariani). Ann was a maven switch board operator at Illinois Bell in addition to taking her girls on the CTA bus to Lake Michigan, to the movies, and sharing her love of music. The Meltzers lived and loved and took lots of road trips together through the late 40’s, 50’s and early 60’s. After the girls were married and starting families and careers of their own, Ann and Bernie moved from Skokie to Florida and enjoyed many years of sunshine and active tropical living. Ann could often be seen rollin’ on her adult-sized tricycle around Century Village. Ann never stopped missing Bernie, who passed in 1988 after 47 years of marriage. She was always saying, "it is time for me to get on with my life, and travel”, but she never did. She was in mourning for 33 years. In the meantime, she kept her buoyant, effervescent spirit. She loved all of her children, grandchildren, great grandchildren, and 17 nieces and nephews, and they all loved her. Grannie Annie was loved by, and known to so many, including check-out people at the supermarket, restaurant servers, and everyone she met. She had a way of making people feel special, like they were the most important person in the room. We know she is pure light, and is overjoyed to be reunited with Zadie.

She is remembered always by her three daughters, Sandy, Pam, and Iris, grandchildren: Laura Gannon Weldon, Kathy Gannon Wicks, Jennifer Schemke, Donovan Schemke, Susan Farney (deceased) and David Alan Farney, great-grandchildren: Emily Weldon, Daniel Weldon, Michael Weldon, Matthew Wicks, Eric Wicks, Danica Paige Schemke, Alexandra Farney Cruz-Robbins, and Aine Farney, and her great-great-grandchildren: Bryleigh Nichole Cruz and Paisley Grace Robbins.

She’s also remembered by the love letters Bernie wrote her every day while he was on Basic Duty in Ft. Meyers in the 40’s, her many catch-phrases, including “It’s to live for!”, and (in response to being told to have a nice day) “You have a better one.”, “We’ll play it by ear.”, “Y’all”, “Que Sera”, and “I’ll see ya when I see ya.” (to name a few). Also always alive in memory: her feisty spirit, fun fashion sense (her hair-bows in every color), her discerning and particular palate (mislinnis olives, salty lox, land-o-lakes meunster, the specific half-and-half for the coffee “hot enough to burn her tongue”), her Charlie Chaplin impression, her adorable burlesque-style shoulder roll dance move, her high penchant for silliness and shtick, and her Betty Boop collection.*

Grannie Annie lived an incredibly full life, and is truly a legend in her own time, She is the last of a beautiful era. We will miss you dearly, Grannie, but "we love you back”, the fact we had so many years together is “Amazing Grace”, and “We’ll see ya when we see ya”!