Abraham Al Eisman

Eulogy from his son Steve: This eulogy will be short and sweet, just like my Dad : ) I think of my Dad as a quiet giant. Unassuming, but always there. He was a gift. It's said that in life there are 'Givers' and there are 'Takers'. My Dad was the ultimate 'Giver'. He was a selfless man. He was genuinely happy to do anything for anyone and expected nothing in return. He did his part to make the world a better place, not because it was the right to do, but because it was the way he was. He loved my Mom, his family, his friends, his music, his photography, his technology, his halavah, his English humor. Simply put, he loved his life. While one of the quietest people in the room, people were drawn to him. He was a non-judgmental, kind soul with a generous spirit. One of those people that you can't NOT love. I consider myself lucky to have had an opportunity to be one of many "Takers" of his wisdoms. I will honor him by sharing his ways with others and doing my little part to better the world. In closing, "Pop", I know you know, but I love you, I thank you, I'll miss you and will continue to do my best to make you proud. You can rest easy knowing that Mom is taken care of, so kick back, relax and enjoy the heavenly jazz ......................................................................................................................... Sue's Eulogy for Al I'll remember Al as my wise big brother. When we grew up on Hendrix Street in East New York, he was in charge of flipping the T.V. station between Steve Allen and Ed Sullivan, and he always got to sit in the one comfortable red chair. Al slept on the castro in the living room because we didn't have a very large apartment and there were four of us. The only time I remember him getting angry was when my sister and I wanted to watch "Mighty Mouse" and we made him wake-up at 10:30 a.m. on Saturday morning. I remember back in the 50's and 60's, Al collected Mad Magazines and hung Playboy pin-ups in the basement room he shared with Stan. He introduced us to jazz and was also a great photographer. I always felt Al was ahead of his time. He didn't follow the masses and didn't care about trends. He always found a positive side to every situation. Al never complained and was always there to lend a helping hand to so many people throughout his life. He was a wonderful husband, father, son to my parents and a great brother. We will miss him very much. I hope he is listening to some cool jazz on this Fat Tuesday which is especially appropriate since today is Mardi Gras. ......................................................................................................................... Carrie's Eulogy for Al On Al's passing, I envision him being greeted by my brother Stan and my father Gabe. It's a warm summer night and Al is welcomed onto a porch overlooking a lake. They all sit quietly, talking in a familiar and intimate way. Stan is smoking a cigar and sipping cognac. My dad throws back a shot of Chivas Regal and puffs on a pipe. Al sips a glass of milk and munches on halavah. Then there's a knock on the door. In come Miles Davis and John Coltrane to serenade them with some straight-ahead jazz. I think that's surely Al's idea of Heaven. Al was truly my Buddha brothersteady, patient, giving, good-humored, kind, selfless and accepting. It's a wonder to me that these qualities came to him so easily and naturally. I truly feel blessed by having had Al as my big brother. ......................................................................................................................... My Tribute to Dad by Michael Eisman This is the hardest thing I have ever had to do or write in my entire life. I have known for a long time that I have hit the parent lottery to be blessed with parents like like my Mother and Father. They have shown me by example how to be a loving and good person. As I have grown up, I have realized more and more how much I learned from Dad and how much I wanted to be just like him. He always had this quiet confidence and contented air about him. Like he did for so many others, he gave so much of himself to me throughout my entire life. I know my love of music was in large part because of him. Dad always had music playing wherever he was. He introduced me to so much great music, but always put up with whatever I was listening to in my childhood, even if was loud rock like KISS, or even disco like the Village People. Dad loved playing his saxophone, and he encouraged me to play an instrument as well. Thanks to both my parents forcing me to practice my trombone, I became decent at it and playing has given me some amazing experiences and great fun. My dad took me to my first baseball game at Shea Stadium to see my favorite player, Tom Seaver. He taught me loyalty by remaining a Brooklyn Dodger fan forever, even after they left town in 1959. He also always made me laugh. Although all of us have groaned at my Dad's jokes, I was always laughing along as well. His jokes somehow managed to be stupid and very clever at the same time. He wasn't a talkative person, but whatever he had to say was always interesting. I was consistently amazed by his never-ending supply of patience. I knew I had really, really, really done something wrong if he became angry. If I ever needed help learning something, or needed something fixed, I knew I could always count on Dad to take the time to do what it took. He was always there for me, and he never judged me or anyone else. He never had a bad word to say about anyone he met throughout life. I sometimes like to think that I don't need anybody; that I can handle everything life throws at me on my own. I know this isn't true. Dad, I have always loved you and needed you, and I will miss you every day of my life. ---------------------------------------------------- MY FRIEND... by Sandi Giordano Al Eisman was a man who lived well and played many roles in his life. He was a loving husband, father, brother, uncle, friend, musician, teacher, gardener, photography buff and all around helper to anyone who needed him. I knew him best as a FRIEND for almost thirty-eight years we've lived side-by-side in Tillson. A little hamlet in the town of Rosendale. How Toby, Al, Ralph and I would laugh over that. Here we were two couples born and raised in Brooklyn in THE CITY, and now we were in THE COUNTRY yenemsvelt to those who understand that term. We shared our lives, our children's growing up and moving on. Our days of working hard and then retirement. Many fun evenings eating out and always waiting for Al to order CHICKEN PARMIGANA-naturally!! No matter what type of restaurant, that was Al's favorite meal. I had two sayings posted on my refrigerator, one that said "FRIENDS ARE FLOWERS IN THE GARDEN OF LIFE and Toby and Al are the roses in our bouquet. And I had one that said "FRIENDS BECOME OUR CHOSEN FAMILY." Al certainly became that, he WAS my chosen brother. But now he is gone and Ralph and I will miss him so. ---------------------------------------------------- Abraham "Al" Eisman of North Road, Tillson died unexpectedly on Friday, February 20, 2009 in Naples, Florida. he was 69. He was born in Brooklyn on August 19, 1939, a son of the late Gabriel Eisman and Rebecca Kaminetsky Eisman Brosman. Raised in Brooklyn, he was a graduate at Stuyvesant High School, New York City, Class of 1957. Mr. Eisman served stateside in the US Army from 1962-1964. He married Toby Singer on January 24, 1965 in Brooklyn. He graduated IN 1967 from Brooklyn College with A BS in Physics. In 1969 he moved to Metuchen, NJ and then to Tillson in 1971. In 1977 he received his Masters in Computer Science from Syracuse University. For 25 years Mr. Eisman worked at I.B.M., Kingston. He retired in 1993 as a programmer. A jazz lover, he play sax with the Big Blue Big Band and the Ulster Community College Band. He was a computer instructor and coach at Senior Net, through Ulster Community College and a member of the Lifetime Learning Institute (LLI) at Bard College. Mr. Eisman enjoyed fitness activities and loved English comedies. A congregant of Temple Emanuel, he currently served as assistant treasurer and board of trustees. Surviving are his wife Toby Singer Eisman; two sons Michael Eisman of Kingston and Steven Eisman and his wife Bonnie Keilty of Charlotte, NC; his twin sisters Susan Eisman of Brooklyn and Carol Eisman of Santa Monica, CA; his sister in law Joyce Portnoy of New York City; one nephew Gregory Eisman, one niece Liana Eisman. One brother, Stanley Eisman died in 2000. A funeral service will be conducted on Tuesday at 12:00 p.m. at Temple Emanuel, 243 Albany Ave. Rabbi Yael Romer will officiate. Interment will be in Montrepose Cemetery. A period of mourning will be observed at the residence on Tuesday from 6:30 - 9:00 p.m., Wednesday and Thursday from 2:00 - 4:00 and 6:30 - 9:00 p.m. Memorial contributions may be made to Temple Emanuel, 243 Albany Ave., Kingston, NY 12401.