Irving Freedman

1936 – 2019

It is with great sadness that the Freedman family announces the passing of Irving Freedman in the early hours of March 29, 2019, when his spirit slipped quietly away from this world into the next.

Though a long-time resident of North Hollywood, CA, Irv was born in Philadelphia, PA, to Frances and Louis Freedman. He attended Olney High School until he was 15 years old, when he lied about his age to become a United States Marine. While serving, he finished his high school education.

Immediately after boot camp, Irv was deployed to the Korean Conflict. During one of his combat missions, he was captured by the North Koreans as a prisoner of war, and was hypnotized along with the other Americans held, in an attempt by the North Koreans to brainwash them into killing their fellow soldiers. Irv rejected those suggestions, and somehow made it back to his unit, but he never forgot the power of hypnosis to change a person’s thinking.

As part his tour of duty, Irv was in the Marine Corp Band, and was later invited to join “The President’s Own” United States Marine Band, but he opted instead to complete his service in Japan and come home.

Upon his return to the U.S., Irv attended the Philadelphia Technical Institute to become an air-conditioning and refrigeration engineer. He paid for his education by teaching ballroom dancing at the Arthur Murray Studios in Philadelphia. His dance training always kept him one step ahead of his students.

Following graduation, he began his career in the air-conditioning industry, and married. Upon the dissolution of that marriage, he was granted sole custody of their two sons. It was then he opened his own business, Arway Air Conditioning and Refrigeration.

Irv never forgot the power of hypnosis, and in his free time, researched and studied it, at the Institute of Relaxation in Blackwood, New Jersey.

Around that same time, Irv met his second wife, Sherre, when his elementary-aged sons, and her two daughters, conspired to bring them together. It was a hit, resulting in 47 happy years.

After Irv and Sherre married, they went back to college, earning their BA’s from Union College, and their MA’s in Psychology from William Lyon University, with a specialization in Marriage and Family Counseling.

The Freedmans opened a counseling practice specializing in hypnotherapy, using that powerful tool to help countless people overcome their fears and phobias, gain self-esteem, and improve their overall mental and physical health. At the same time, they continued building the Arway business, and also opened their hearts and home to three of their sons’ homeless friends, teaching them the air-conditioning trade, and giving all five boys jobs with the company.

Irv and Sherre wrote, recorded, and sold their hypnotherapy tapes and CDs worldwide, and created a unique form of art called Hypno-Art, which contained positive suggestions woven into the pictures Irv and Sherre drew, suggestions that would be picked up subconsciously as the users colored those pictures in.

A highlight of the Freedman’s careers as therapists was teaching hypnosis internationally for Cal Lutheran College. They also taught for UCLA’s nursing program, and the nurses of Santa Monica College, Pasadena College, Pierce College, and Valley College—as well as self-improvement classes to the public.

Irv, a Renaissance man in the truest form, will be lovingly remembered for his quick wit and an unquenchable thirst for knowledge about everything: health, nutrition/supplements, nature, music, and all things in life. He believed in the concept of “paying it forward,” and generously shared his expertise with clients, friends, and loved ones. He loved to “make things grow,” both in his garden—which was filled with flowers, cacti, and succulents—and with people. He was able to fix anything, including cars and most home repairs, and liberally helped all in need of his talents. He was an inspiration and a mentor to everyone he met.

After the passing of their two oldest children in 2017—two weeks apart from each other—Sherre and Irv adopted Trixie, their Cairn-Terrier mix, from a shelter. Trixie was Irv’s constant companion, and he loved her like no other. She stayed by Irv’s side up until his last breath on earth.

Irv is survived by wife, Sherre Freedman; son, Randy Freedman; stepdaughter, Marjorie Atkins; grandchildren, Aaron Brass, Joshua Freedman, Tara Atkins-Wightman, and Robert Weinshank; great-grandchildren, Mason and Tyler Brass, and Daisy and Nora Freedman; and his sister, Esther Eglick. He is predeceased by son, Scott Freedman; stepdaughter, Mindee Walters; sister, Hilda Diamond; and brothers, Harry and Arthur Freedman.

Sherre and the family would like to thank the nurses on the 4th and 5th floors, as well as the technicians in the Dialysis Department, at Kaiser Permanente Hospital, Panorama City, for their extraordinary care during Irv’s time there.

A memorial celebration of his life will be held at Groman-Eden Mortuary, 11500 Sepulveda Blvd, Mission Hills, CA 91345, Wednesday , April 24, 2019, at 9 a.m.

Please RSVP at: [email protected]