I loved my mom, Vivian Walker. “Viv.”  She was one of a kind, and I imagine many of you are nodding about that. I called my mom, “Ma,” “Viv”, or “mom,” and as we grew older, “Yo Viv” seemed to fit the best.
For those of you who do not know Viv’s history:
Briefly, she was born in the Bronx in 1931 and was the daughter of Minnie and Harry Popick. She adored her mother and respected her father. Viv would do anything for her mother, Minnie, who she diligently took care of in her later years.
Viv and my father, Jonas Walker, moved from the Bronx to Rockland County NY in 1962. My sister, Sherrie, was born in the Bronx, as was I, and we grew up in Spring Valley, our town in Rockland County. Viv and her four best friends from the Bronx, Phyllis Lieber, Carol Gross, Helen Mandel, and Janet Feldstein, all made a pact to move to the burbs and raise their families near each other, so they could continue their long-standing friendships. I always thought that was kind of cool. They stuck through this pact till each of them passed, with Viv being the last to go, an end of an era, as one of the sons of these mothers, Alan Feldstein, recently said to me. 
Going back in time now, Viv was the rebel of the crowd in the Bronx, smoking cigs on the corner, dating guys, getting into trouble with her strict dad, and being a wise-gal.  She was a personality early on, and decided soon after high school to start working and earn money. This marked the start of her adulthood. Her plan was to work, be independent, and do her own thing, often against her daddy’s wishes. He was not such a nice guy though, so yeah, that was cool again. Her mother Minnie was an angel.
Viv continued her rebel ways in Rockland waiting to have kids 5-10 years after all of her buddies had children of their own. She enjoyed being able to go out and what not. Finally, she decided to have kids. First came Sherrie, and then me. 


I think have rambled enough for now about Viv. For mostly better (and sometimes a little bit for the worse), she was truly an exceptional woman. She lived on her own down here for 21 years, and that is not easy. She remained active through age 90, gardening and socializing and reading politics and watching her Yankees, and blabbing on end with anyone who will engage her. She will be missed. That is for sure.

Viv was a force, and had strong views, yet when she met my amazing wife, Laura, she often paused, and listened, and learned. Laura is a patient counter-puncher, waiting for Viv to exhaust herself with her rambles and stream o consciousness rants, and then bam!  A simple counter-point that would stop Viv in her tracks, and wind up with a comment like: “Hmmmm, I never thought about it like that.”  Laura and Viv are quite different, yet Viv respected Dr. Finfer mucho, and learned that a rebel need not necessarily have to be loud to be proud.
When it came to her grandkids, Kaela and Jesse, Viv was a hoot. They LOL many times at her schticks and spiel’s and language. Oh could she motherfucking curse. I would never! Viv was aligned with our values of being Jewish, yet also being atheists. We had deep discussions about life, evolution, god, and social justice. 
Viv then had another equal partner with her granddaughter, Kaela. Kaela took up the mantle of being the loud, proud, woke woman, and she and gamma Viv would exchange lengthy riotous emails about life, TV, movies, art and culture. Viv was so proud of her grandkids. My son, Jesse, has had to deal with various challenges and Viv learned about autism, and educated others about it as well. She never stopped asking me and my wife questions about ASD. And boy could Viv make Jesse laugh!! Despite not being to see her grandkids often, she had a connection with them as they knew from conversations and occasional visits and stories, so many stories Viv relayed, her soul, values and essence.
Before I close, I want to give a personal shout out to my cousins, Alan and Maureen Popick, Viv’s niece and nephew. They were very, very close, and they joined Sher and me in saying goodbye to Viv in-person during a very tough 3 day stretch earlier this week. Thank you so much, guys. I love you.

Viv was always good with the social graces, and was adamant about formalities, gifts, gestures, and whatnot. It was always perilous to screw up by not sending a thank you card with Viv in charge. She never ceased her cordial social director activities, being on the welcome committee at Malvern, and also the beautification committee, and likely the loudest annoyance to much of the rest of the committees on which she served. 
However, Viv also set herself up for some challenges trying to be a trendsetter and a mom while working and commuting. Sometimes it paid a toll. 
Viv was super helpful when it came to supporting her kids financially and through effort. So for example she helped us move, set up in a new place, and shop etc. She gave to us what she could, yet sometimes it may have not necessarily been the right kind of giving with my sister. 
Viv and Jonas moved down to Tamarac in 1994, the year I moved back to NYC from San Francisco to marry my wife, Laura. Viv and Jonas made a good life down here, with both of them thriving with old friends and family who had moved in the Fort Lauderdale area prior to them. Jonas quickly rebuilt his mensch like TV repairman business (“get your TV serviced by a very nerdy, honest, old Jew!”  What better ad could you have in the yellow pages?). Unfortunately, my dad passed away after only living in Tamarac for 6 years, and Viv was a very sad widow, never to remarry. I always wondered how that settled with her. I asked her about it a few times, as we were close that way, yet she said she was not terribly interested. I do not know if that was true. I always felt like she was a bit lonely. Made me sad for her.
Viv definitely had presence and made herself known. She was a voice of unreason, a liberal bastion in a conservative context. Viv attended political talks, and spoke out. I did not see these things, and only heard from Viv how it went down, yet she was candid in that she often caused a ruckus. A true rebel without a cause. 

Viv never stopped working though. Unlike most other mothers in the 1960s and 1970s, she worked full-time, first as a secretary and then as a sales rep in the Garment Center. She commuted every day to NYC via the Red & Tan bus line, an arduous and nauseating commute, as it was a major pain to get from Rockland to NYC. Viv wanted to do both/and when it came to being a parent and a self-sufficient earner. Jonas was mellow, and was okay with that arrangement. Viv would often hang overnight in Manhattan with her single, hip friends, Ina, Rita, and Jeannie. They were a fabulous foursome, pre-dating Sex and the City in an elegant and fun way. I have no real idea what frivolity these women engaged in during that time, and imagine it was pretty cool.
So, I grew up with a mom who was supremely well-dressed for work, and somewhat exhausted from the end of her day and commute. I learned as a kid that Viv was the voice of the family, who made and enforced the rules. As I inherited her mouth and wise-guy tendencies, I also quickly learned that my mom also had a temper on top of her other traits.
Viv loved a lot of things:
•	Going out with friends
•	Good food
•	Shopping, shopping, and more shopping (one of the reasons why she wanted to work and earn, so that she could shop to her heart’s content)
•	Politics
•	New York Yankees
•	Bugging my mellow dad
•	Laughing. Lots of laughing
•	Hosting parties at our backyard pool
•	Cleaning, always cleaning, until she cleaned herself to death (sorry, dark sick humor)
•	And gardening and flowers. I bet many of you know her well cos of her love for flowers, and her general Martha Stewart-berg-stein ways. She is the orchid queen. The lady of the lilly. Something like that…

May the cool mom in the neighborhood rest in peace.  Viv always welcomed us into her home, and was one of the cool kids, right there with us.  Her memory will live on forever.  Steve my condolences to you and your family.  

I've been friends with Steve for over 50 years.  I probably spent more time at the Walker residence as a teenager than I did at mine.  I don't know anyone that didn't like Viv nor anyone that she didn't like.   If you never got to know her, you absolutely missed out.

She was warm and generous, fun and gracious, ready to speak her mind and willing to listen to yours.  She didn't pull any punches and would tell you like it was, like it or not.

I haven't seen her in some time but I will always miss her.

Love always,

Your other son


Vivian was a great addition to her Malvern family; always willing
to add a hand or make calls.    RIP  You will be missed and remembered.            

Dear Steve and the Walker Family,
Viv will always be remembered as the coolest mom to all the Blueberry Boys.  The stories you continue to share would make her smile.  RIP VIV. 
Love ya,
Rory & Mary

A warm , hip, cool  lady. always engaging , hospitable and ahead of her time. She will be missed.

OBITUARY

Vivian Walker

March 2, 1931 – June 30, 2021

Star of David Memorial Gardens Cemetery & Funeral Chapel

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