Margot D Hirschland Panofsky

From the Tucson Sun:

Margot Hirschland Panofsky

   On August 28, 2008 Margot Hirschland Panofsky died peacefully at her residence in Tucson, Arizona. Margot was born May 24, 1920 in Essen, Germany to parents Gertrud née Freudenberg and Max Hirschland. At the age of 17, after the loss of her mother, Margot became de facto mother to younger brother Karl Ludwig. In May 1939 she fled Germany with Karl (who became Charles Hannam, educator and author) for England with the 'Kindertransport', leaving behind a beloved father and maternal grandfather Louis Freudenberg, who both perished at the Terezenstadt concentration camp.

In 1944 she married Alfred Max Panofsky, also a German refugee, who had two grown children, Hans and Ruth. Alfred was a banker like Margot's father and the two shared much in common and developed a lasting partnership. Margot, Alfred and children emigrated to New York in 1948. In short order both Alfred (Freddy as Margot called him) and Margot were successful New Yorkers building careers, travelling extensively and dreaming about a place to retire and enjoy life -- Tucson, Arizona. In late 1957, Margot and Freddy bought a modest house in the (then) northern outskirts of Tucson near the junction of Oracle and Ina. There they created a lovely home and embraced Tucson and the Sonoran Desert. They developed a loving group of loyal, lifelong friends including the Schloss family who adopted Margot; and, Margot in turn adopted them.
Freddy became the first director of the Tucson Art Museum. Margot was also very interested in art, but found her calling in photography. In 1973, Freddy died after a long chronic illness and in many ways Margot was now more free than ever to pursue her passions.
She became a very skilled photographer, winning awards with black and white images she developed in her studio built adjacent to her home. She continued her exploration of the Sonoran Desert with hiking partners Bob Quinn and Gerd Schloss up Mount Lemmon and into the many canyons of the Catalinas and beyond.
She was a tinkerer and worked on theater sets and in other roles for a variety of Tucson theater companies. Her academic interests were varied and she attended many classes at the U of A. She claimed that she was an absolute failure in her ceramics class in spite of having the best teacher, Maurice Grossman, who became a loyal friend. She successfully linked her world travels with her interest in archeology and anthropology. Margot enjoyed her professional and personal relationship with Berta Wright, a primary mover and shaker of the Arizona arts scene.
Margot was generous and loyal with her friends who remember fondly her famous New Year's parties. She was also generous with local charities and educational organizations such as the U of A College of Humanities, the Desert Museum and Tucson public television, KUAT-TV. Even towards the very end of her life, Margot never gave up her sense of humor and dignity. She is survived by her brother Charles Hannam and family of Devon, UK; her grandchildren Anne Louise Barnett Elkington, Peter Barnett, John and David Panofsky and their respective families; and, Jeannette Schloss and Jacob Schloss, both whom she considered family. We are all greatly indebted to the wonderful care Margot received from Casa de la Luz Hospice, staff at The Forum, the Tucson Medical Center and her dear friends Lizzie Schloss, Tom Larson, Ernie and Marianne Schloss.