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November 17, 2007
In loving memory, Elsie Goldie Rubenstein Minster
Elsie Goldie Rubenstein was born in Chicago, Illinois on December 24, 1914. A child of the Depression, her life was vastly different than the current "Have Everything Now" milieu.
Her mother passed away when Elsie was 9. To help care for Elsie and her siblings, Cherrie and Label, her aunt, uncle, and cousin moved in. At thirteen, Elsie dropped out of school and went to work to help support the family. When her father died, she took time off for the traditional mourning period. Her employer fired her, primarily because they found out she was Jewish.
As a teenager, Elsie became an impressive dancer. It was the cheapest entertainment around, and provided her with a lot of happiness throughout her life. A chance meeting on a bus led her to meet the love of her life, Sam Minster.
Sam and Elsie married with the Depression still raging. Their first son, Sheldon, was born in 1935. Five years later, Marshall Ned was born. Nine years later, Martha Maxine was born.
Sam's 8 brothers and sisters started moving out to Los Angeles. When his mother moved West, Sam announced that he was following her to LA. Elsie was devastated and tried to convince Sam to stay in Chicago, where Elsie's brother and sister still lived. Eventually, the headstrong Elsie acquiesed to the equally stubborn Sam and the Minster clan moved out of Chicago's ethnically-divided West Side to LA.
Elsie helped run Minster Baths on Melrose, in addition to raising her children and managing the household finances. Her real estate investment decisions were notoriously ill-fated (who knew city real estate would rise so much in value?), but her passion for family could never be equaled.
Elsie never minced words: what was in her head came out her mouth, with no filter. Once, she was in line at a supermarket behind an odiferous burly man. She loudly proclaimed that he stunk. He turned and explained that he had just gotten off of work at a construction job. She told him that was no excuse, he should shower before going out in public. The conversation went on for several minutes, with Elsie explaining the finer points of deodorant use.
She was equally no-nonsense with her family. Sometimes, this strained relationships. Most of the time, we accepted her for who she was: her world view was narrowed and prejudiced by her life experiences; but, her passion for her family was never questioned. She was a true matriarch: one foot firmly planted in another era, the other foot providing support to her 21st century family.
The Yiddish word for mother-in-law is shvigger. An illustrated dictionary will show an older woman with a sour face. That could never describe Elsie. She welcomed everyone into her family with open arms, respecting people's privacy when they requested the space, but always available when needed. She made gifilte fish by hand for Passover - combining several types of white fish into the traditional, strange but tasty delicacy eaten with horseradish. Her tsmisses was equally well received - a combination of roasted meat, potatoes, and carrots that was simply delicious.
Her laugh was her calling card. She was born with an old lady's cackle. If you didn't know her, you might not understand the reason for the ruckus at the dinner table next to you at a supper club. Some found her ability for laughter uncouth; her family recognized it as a pure joy. And her granddaughters proudly carry on the cackling tradition.
Elsie lived alone after her husband's death for her remaining four decades. She was alone in her apartment 8 years ago when she suffered a stroke that paralyzed her left side. Though she lived in a nursing home for the remainder of her life, her wit never failed her. She remained cognizant through her last weeks of life.
Elsie passed on Thursday, November 15 with her eldest grandchild at her side. She is survived by Sheldon & Linda Minster, their children Ken & Valerie, Sam & Lisa and grandchildren Lauren & Shane; Marshall & Phyllis Minster, their children Scott, Elizabeth & Ziv Haims, and Cynthia and grandchildren Jacob, Zachary, and Isaac; and Maxine & Paul Brooks, their children Jason and Jocelyn & Dom McCarthy.
May she rest in peace.
Posted by cj at November 17, 2007 04:54 PM