Elizabeth L. Spitz

Shiva will be observed at Joan Roberts' home - 48 Old Wagon Rd., Woodstock, NY Thursday from Noon - 9 PM. (Please read Joan's thoughts and reflections about her mom, following the obituary.) Elizabeth (Betty) Levine Spitz of Rhinebeck, NY passed away on Sunday, December 3, 2006. She was 98 years old. Mrs. Spitz was a former resident of the Majorca Towers in North Miami, FL.; Parkview Apartments in Albany, NY; and Country Ridge Estates in Rye Brook, NY. She was born on March 28, 1908 in New York City the daughter of the late Cantor Julius and Celia Levine, also former residents of South Beach. Her husband, Carl Spitz, who had been very active with the City of North Miami, died in 1986. Survivors include her daughter, Joan Spitz Roberts along with long time companion Alex Sharpe of Woodstock, NY and her son and daughter-in-law, Edward R. Spitz and Gail Basile of Port Washington, NY. Grandchildren are Nancy Anne Roberts, Peter and Pamela Roberts O'Connor, Carolyn Spitz Stone and Myles and Julie Spitz Norin. Her five great grandchildren are Joshua, Danny & Theodore O’Connor and Jacob and Benjamin Norin. Mrs. Spitz is also survived by two sisters, Gertrude Hirsh of Bloomfield, NJ and Ruth Bradburd of Riverdale, NY and many nieces and nephews. Five other sisters and a brother died previously. Mrs. Spitz spent her life as a homemaker, hospital volunteer, member of Hadassah, Women’s American ORT and B’Nai Brith Women. In North Miami Mrs. Spitz served as a dedicated volunteer for twenty-five years at both the North Miami General Hospital and the Parkway Regional Medical Center in North Miami Beach. In Rye Brook, Mrs. Spitz was an active Gray Lady at the United Hospital in Port Chester for many years. An accomplished musician, Mrs. Spitz served as a pianist for many functions through Hadassah, Women’s American ORT and Majorca Towers in North Miami. Graveside services will be conducted at Congregation Kneses Tifereth Israel Cemetery, Greenwich, CT on Tuesday at 11:00 AM. Memorial contributions may be made to the Alzheimers Association, 2 Jefferson Plaza, Suite 102, Poughkeepsie, NY 12603-4027; the Lions Foundation at Albany, NY, Inc., PO Box 8835, Albany, NY 12208; The Baptist Home in Rhinebeck, or to a charity of your choice. ................................. My Mom lived a long and beautiful life. While the past six years have been blurred by her physical and mental conditions, Mom’s spirit and enthusiasm for her life and her family always shined through. Betty was a nurturer and a doer. She was always there with a hug, a laugh, a sparkle - and a great sing a long around the piano. What do I remember most about my Mom? She was a very proud and talented woman. And she always looked younger and more beautiful than any one else’s Mom. When we lived on Gates Place in the Bronx, Mom was always the chief cook and homemaker. While Dad traveled to earn his living, Mom was home with Eddie and me. A beautiful woman, a stylish dresser - and always wore her heels to show off her gorgeous gams. She was a very talented pianist - playing only by ear and not being able to read music until I started taking piano lessons. Then I think she learned to read by watching me. But she hardly needed to learn. If you just hummed a piece, she would sit down and play it - in any key - and with full, correct, chordal accompaniment. It was amazing to watch and to listen! She was always my inspiration. Her style of playing is called 'stride' piano and she was terrific at it. Her biggest fan was, of course, my Dad - seconded by Eddie and me. Mom and Dad often sang Dad’s favorite crooning song - as a duet. With harmony and everything! The name of the song is 'The Sweetheart of All My Dreams', and the first lines are, 'I Love You, I Love You, I Love You...' With them singing in harmony it was a hit - and a hoot! This past Nov. 8th was the 75th anniversary of Mom and Dad’s marriage and that song holds a very special place. Mom was a voracious reader and educated herself through her books, her crossword puzzles and her music. She was an absolute WIZ at the Sunday Times crossword puzzle and you could always find her at the kitchen table - whether in the Bronx, Port Chester, Byram or North Miami - going back again and again to the puzzle until she finished it. Sometimes even in ink! Mom loved to go to the movies. When I was a little girl and out of school for a day, she would take me along on the bus to Fordham and we’d either go to the Loew’s Paradise to the movies or the Astor Theatre further down the Concourse. I remember going to see 'Roman Holiday' with Mom at the Astor Theatre. I was 9 years old and fell in love that day with Audrey Hepburn AND Gregory Peck. Thanks Mom! At Nokomis Camps each summer, my Mom was the freshest and prettiest of all the Mothers visiting. She brought lots of goodies on Visiting Sundays - as only a Mom can bring. My stash was always one of the more popular in my bunk! We moved to Rye Brook in 1957 and had a single family house after living in an apartment in the City for many years. Mom LOVED decorating the house and coordinating colors and discovered how really good she was at doing that. We met the new neighbors and Dad got everyone immediately involved by organizing a New Years Eve party in an old mansion on the development property. All the new neighbors got involved and as a result, they all went from new neighbors to new friends. The next Halloween, Mom put on one of those whole head monster masks, and a trench coat and walked around the neighborhood going 'Trick or Treat' in a very deeply disguised voice. All by herself. No one recognized her or said anything - they were trying to guess who this 'teenager' was. Until she got to the Grubers around the corner. Helen Gruber opened the door, Mom said 'Trick or Treat,' Helen looked down at Mom’s shoes and said, 'Betty - what the heck are you doing?' Mom always had really lovely - and distinctive shoes! Of course, Mom and Dad thought they had planned so well between Eddie and me. Eight years apart! Eddie would grow up and get married and I’d still be at home. NOT! I got married first in 1963 and Eddie got married second in 1964. So there they were - in this big, empty house. They first moved to a lovely townhouse apartment in Putnam Green in CT where there was a pond with ducks - to the delight of all newly born granddaughters! With Nancy and Pamela, Mom was like a Pied Piper. She was my best and wisest babysitter and the girls loved her and sang with her often. Their favorite songs were 'Button Up Your Overcoat' and 'You Are My Sunshine'. Carolyn & Julie loved 'A Your Adorable...' Pam and I sang those songs to her on Saturday afternoon. Mom also loved to read books to Nancy & Pam - and they LOVED her to do that! As Mom and Dad aged, my mother developed little sayings to impart her wisdom. One of the most enduring phrases, I never quite understood, but it really sounds important. If any one of us were to go out for an evening or on a trip, or even shopping - Mom would always say, 'Just do the right thing!' We always appeased her by saying, 'Of course' but I’ve got to ask you, what exactly did that mean? We’d giggle and think about it, but 'the right thing' was a really broad term. I asked her once what she meant and she said that the right thing was the proper thing ... or something like that. I’m still not sure what that all meant, but she WAS a big fan of Emily Post. Another thing she always would say was - 'You know, I never complain...' and then she would proceed to complain about ... something. Usually something really small and funny. But then she started saying, 'It’s not good to get old...' I would say something like, 'the alternative isn’t good either...' and we would laugh and hug and go about what we had been doing. During her Florida years - and especially after Dad died, she would look forward to having family company because she wanted to hug someone. She missed hugging when we weren’t around. In Florida, Mom loved being active in the building. Mom & Dad both got involved with the Condominium Association and knew everyone on all 9 floors. They had a nice group of new friends - and older ones as well who moved to Florida from the north. They had an active social life and especially loved it when any of us came down for a visit. One summer, Mom and Dad took Nancy and Pam for a whole month. They learned to play 'Marco Polo' in the pool with some of the other grandchildren in the building. The girls became like the social directors and wanted to go around to all of the other apartments when they were leaving so they could say good-bye to their new friends - mostly the other retirees! Mom gave them little baskets and they came back with trinkets and candy - like THEY had been Trick or Treating! In July! When Mom was captured by us in 1996 and living once more up north, we spent more time involved with her daily rituals. The Alzheimers was taking more and more hold on her, but she fought valiantly and struggled to keep up with us - and the rest of the world. There’s a lot of pain in the ravages of this disease, but there are some lighter moments as well. One day, Ed and Gail came to visit Mom in Albany. They took her up to Lake George to the company stores shopping area there and spent a lovely afternoon. Then they dropped her off at her apartment in Albany and drove home. Mom called me in Woodstock to tell me about the wonderful day she had. She got my answering machine because I wasn’t yet home. She was accustomed to the machine and knew just what to do. Her message went something like this, 'Hi Joni. I just spent the most delightful day with Eddie and Gail. They took me up to a lovely shopping area and we went into many of the stores. Then we went to lunch and had a really lovely time. It was so nice spending the time with them. They just dropped me off and are heading home. But I really loved my day. ............ Joni? ........ Joni - are you there? .... Where’d you go? ....... You hung up on me?' That message stayed on my machine for months. I couldn’t bear to take it off. An old friend, Elsie Lapin wrote:'...your mother was always a pleasure to be with...a very happy-go-lucky person. I see her face with a smile. She brought a lot of good times to people.' Mom - I wish you love and smooth sailing on this new journey. It is my hope that you’re with Dad and all of your sisters and brother - and Grandma and Grandpa too. I love you, Mom. Joan