Dorothy Dorothea Devora Sasson

My condolencces to the, to my brother and his family, to her 6 grandchildren, her extended family, to Bummas neighbors, to this incredible community that has come to say goodbye. How do you say goodbye to such an incredible woman, how do you begin to say thank you..how did Bunma, become Bunma.. Once, a taxi driver pulled up to take Bunma to a doctors appt. This guy gets out and introduces himself and tells me that everyone in the city knows Bumma, that she is famous in town. This little old lady who always sits on the couch with a phone is famous. She is a giver he tells me, not a taker. How do we say goodbye, it is such a hard thing to do...

  Dorothea Perlman, later to become Dorothea Sasson was born on Oct 11, 1924 in her Grandmother's bed in Antwerp Belgium.

  Her mother was Regina Perlman, her father was Lewis Perlman, the family lived in Germany. My mother was born when Hitler was on the rise, and her father and mother fearing the antisemitism in Germany, decided the baby should be born out of the country so that if the child was a male it would not be consecrated to the German army.

  The birth of my mother was very difficult, it occurred  at  her grandmothers home, in her grandmothers bed. During childbirth  a physician was requested to hurry to the bedside. Upon arrival he told Buma's father that he could not save both the mother and baby and that Buma's father had to choose.  He choose to save his wife.  As Bumma told me "They say I was stuck in the corner of the room  and forgotten about until they looked at me and I was still around...My father then called up his father to say that a girl had been born, when my grandfather heard that a bachur, a first born had not been delivered, he hung up the phone."

  Bumma was spent her childhood years in Konningsberg Germany remaining there till age 11. She was the oldest of 4 children, 2 boys and 2 girls. She attended a gGermanschool whose name was changed while she was in 3rd grade to the Adolf Hitler School . She did not go for 6th grade,Jewish children were excluded from attending German public schools.

  Her parents tried to organize the Jewish community to make a Jewish Day School for  children to attend. In 1935 her father who had a large and prosperous import and export grain company was arrested and falsely accused of tax evasion. This was because he was sending large sums of money to help Jews abroad who where trying to escape. After spending a month in jail his lawyer arranged for a temporary release and Bumma's parents planned their escape from Germany.

  On Christmas Eve, 1936 the family gave gifts of wine to the Nazis guarding the house, a house whose possessions now bore the mark of the German state. After dinner, they put on their coats and took a casual stroll outside--to the train station. There Bumma was separated from her parents and bros and sis, given to other relatives who then gave her a false passport and passed her off as there own daughter.  She was told many times who she was supposed to be and then told to shut up when they went through passport control.  She took her uncles hand and past by the authorities at the border. She went to live in Holland where she lived in great fear until she was reunited with her family several months later.  Bumma was 12 years old, she did not get to have a Bat Mitvah.

  Her parents had to find a way to make a living. Her father's brothers had begun mining diamonds in the dangerous Amazon Jungle in Brazil. The family moved from Belgium to Brazil where her father soon began buying diamonds from the Indians, leaving for several days as he traveled deep into the Amazon. Bumma had some of her best memories in Brazil when her father would return home for Shabbat and the extended family would come to Fri NT dinner." On Fri NT all the cousins would come we had a long table, the men would sit on 1  end and the women in the middle, the men would learn over there and the women would schmooze, we ate peanuts on the other  end of the table".. Bumma attended H. S. in San Pa lo at the Gymnasium. When she was 16 the diamond hunter, her father was in a commercial airline that collided midair with a private stunt plane and was killed. His tephillin was found in the wreckage.

  In 1942 what was left of her family emigrated to to New York. "It was 1942 and German submarines whee all over. The boat had to go in total darkness. No one was allowed to even smoke on deck because subs where everywhere..everyone knew it was very dangerous to cross the water to the United States.."

  My mother entered Hunter College in 1943, working her way as a translator for an Agriculture Magazine call the FARM. She had to translate letters from the farmers from English to Portuguese. She started making $2 an hr and got a raise to $6.

  When she was in her 20s she joined a Zionist youth movement, the Hashomer Hadati and met my father in 1947.  One week after they married the 1948 Israeli War of Independence broke out and Bumma wanted to make Aliyah, her husband did not. Instead the newlyweds moved to Chicago so my father could finish his degree in optometry. They had no money, so they shared a small apt with another couple. When my mother needed some space she would stretch out in the bathtub to read a book.

  In 1953, they gave birth to there first child, Lionel. The family moved to Harrisburg Pa- my father opened an optometry practice that failed. Bumma supported the family teaching Kinder garden at the local JCC. She said " I had no idea how to teach". She went to Penn State Univ to get a teaching Lic  "I taught 6 years in the Harris burgh JCC, in that time I got one raise in the summer and by the fall they rescinded it." In 1954 she gave birth to her second son, Tanny. Bumma started teaching at the Riverside Public School in Harrisburg Pa, my father failed at another optometry practice and the couple divorced.

  When I was 11 and my bro was 9 my mother brought us to Long Beach New york. " I went to look at Far Rockaway, I went to look at Monsey and then I went to look at LB--I  said you know what, LB has everything that these other places have but it has the ocean-- and it doesn't have the subway so u don't get mobs of people and there is a day school here and I decided my kids would not be happy in an apt in NYC they are outdoor kids and it's better for the dog so I moved to Long Beach..."

  She took a job in Roosevelt, the Island Park Schools,staying there from 1968 until 1987 " When I applied people said you will never get the job, there are no Jews there, its antisemitic and its only for Italians. None of it was true, it was a good atmosphere, I was very well recvd and well liked.." She went to Hofstra Univ at night and recievereceiveders degree in Special Education, then she went to Adephi Univ. and recievereceivedr masters in Reading.

From her retirement until no w, the last 20 years where the best of her life. The person who once was a student in the Adolf Hilt er school, found her peace @ 343 E. Penn St. Long Beach, N Y.. To her left was her good neighbor & friend, Channa Hoffman, until a few years ago down the block was her personal confidant and fellow quiet mitzvah maker Rachel Levi, in between where the people who looked in on her on a daily basis, keeping her company on the weekdays, inviting her over for lunch of Shabbos, walking her dog when she could not, Mr. Sholomo Wasserman the Peritskys, ;Dora Heller , the Zimmermans, Lois & Lesley Katz, Sheri and Jerry Speal She learned how to use a cell phone, the a computer, l she finally caved and went from dial up to high speed Internet. She walked up to the boardwalk to look at the waves as often as she could, she then had to report back to her grandchildren in Boston the exact wave heights, how many guys where out there and what type of wet suits they had on. Her home remained open to everyone, often people stayed there while she was away. All ages sought her advice, she stayed in touch with everyone, friends and family where her most precious possessions.

 In her medical crisis she demonstrated bravery and remarkable courage.  Her doctors told her to quit caffeine and she did, but she could never give up her chocolate. During Pesach we observed her several times retreating to her secret stash,  finally she just started eating it out in the open. She ate chocolate right to the end , enjoying life as much as she could. We remain indebted to her physicians, Elissa Grill, Eric Steinberg,   St Francis Hospital, who saved her life many times.

 There is a final mitvah Bunma set out to do that she could not finish.  She would not mind if I asked, at this occasion, for the communities help.  Bunma has been cared for by a Mallach of sorts. This person tended to Bunma in a caring, divine and respectful manner.  Bunma could never allow anyone to take care of her, but Jocelyn was able to help her cook and clean and travel and be independent. With the death of Bunma, Jocelyn has no work and will not be abe to support her daughter.  It is Bunmas wish for Jocelyn to have employment, and for someone else to benefit from this magnificent persons care.  If you have a need, please approach any family member so we can complete Bunmas last mitvah.

   Today, the day of Bunmas funeral we look back at her life and we are grateful to hashem for putting her on this earth and allowing her to touch so many lives. Bunmas favorite tephillha, her favorite prayer was Hallel. As we look back at the girl who was a student in the Hitler school and is being put to rest in a big shule surronded by the jewish community and her family we must say HALLILYAH, THANK U GOD,