Irene S. Polakoff, age 92
October 3, 1926 – September 11, 2019
Funeral services are Sunday 11 am, September 15 at Temple Sinai of Bergen County, One Engle Street, Tenafly, NJ. Private Family Burial will follow at New Montefiore Cemetery in Farmingdale, NY.
Memorial Service for the First Night of Shivah will be Sunday 7:30 pm, September 15 at The Jewish Center, 435 Nassau Street, Princeton,
Irene Joslyn Shklarin was born in New York City on October 3, 1926. Her parents, Julius and Dora (Okun) Shklarin, had been born in Russia. She grew up in the Bronx during the Depression and Second World War, along with her older sister, Beatrice.
Irene excelled academically and graduated from High School at 15 years of age, and from Hunter College, New York City, with a degree in Fine Arts, at age 19. She was student teaching when she met Harold Polakoff, a music teacher and band leader, after his return home from the war in Europe. Irene earned her Masters of Arts degree from Columbia University Teachers College, in 1948, at age 21. Irene and Harold were married shortly after her graduation, on June 30, 1948 at the Saint Moritz Hotel in New York City.
It was the perfect creative marriage of music and art. When her first child, Donald, was born in 1953, her individual hand-painted birth announcements proclaimed “We’re tooting our horn and painting the town!”
Irene took some time off from teaching, on maternity leave, and her youngest child, Susan was born in 1957. The family moved from Brooklyn to Valley Stream, Long Island, NY in 1960, where she resided until 2012.
Irene returned to her career as a high school art teacher after moving to Valley Stream.
She had been teaching at Girls High School, in the Bedford-Stuyvesant section of Brooklyn; and then became part of the original faculty at John Bowne High School in Queens, in 1964. When she retired from John Bowne at almost age 70, she had been teaching for nearly 50 years, the longest tenure in New York City school system.
Irene was an accomplished artist, with her works including charcoal portraits, impressionist oil paintings of scenes from her extensive travels, but specializing in watercolor & ink paintings of floral arrangements from important family events.
She was a favorite teacher, with her classes oversubscribed, and relating to students of all cultures, abilities, and backgrounds. She enjoyed the friendship of her teaching colleagues, whether carpooling or socializing with the infamous “lunch table” crew.
Irene and Harold enjoyed music, theatre, and the arts together, attending Broadway shows and Lincoln Center performances often. They were an extremely hard-working team, with Irene taking care of her family and cooking a nightly family dinner, after a full day of teaching and commuting. In addition to teaching music, Harold performed nights and weekends as band leader, under the stage name Hal Parker.
Travel became Irene’s favorite family pastime, and summer-long trips were amongst the highlights of her children’s childhood. Once her children were off to college, Irene and Harold traveled the world extensively, especially during her sabbaticals. She was a fearless and adventuress traveler, exploring places far beyond the typical tourist sites.
The joy of her life became her grandchildren, and later, great-grandchildren. She shared a unique and special relationship with each of them. She would hand paint a themed poster for each of their birthdays. Irene had endless energy, spending hours playing with them, doing art projects, and swimming in the pool. She attended their birthday parties, camp visiting days, sporting events, graduations, B’nai Mitzvahs, and weddings. While frugal, and never having any material desires for herself, she was extremely generous with her children and grandchildren. Saving for higher education was a priority.
Irene and Harold celebrated their 50th Anniversary with their entire family present, in 1998, in Bermuda. Harold passed away in 2002. Irene continued to travel with her family, including trips to the Cayman Islands, Mexico, Florida, Texas, and several more family weddings and graduations.
In 2012, Irene moved to Brandywine Living at Princeton, where she made new friends and continued to spend quality time with her family. She developed a special relationship with her daughter-in-law Karen, who spent endless hours visiting with her, and coordinating her care, at Brandywine. She continued to beat everyone in Scrabble, and won her final art competition, sponsored by the Health Care Association of NJ 2015, painting “A Tribute to Harold.” She endeared herself to the staff, taking interest in their lives and families, providing advice and wisdom such as furthering their education and savings. She often joked with them, and attempted to speak to them in their native languages, a skill acquired from her years of travel. Ultimately, it all came back to her, as the entire staff provided her with the most loving and compassionate care as the end drew near.
Irene Polakoff is survived by her son Donald R. Polakoff MD (Karen) of Princeton NJ; daughter Susan Zeveloff MD (Barry) of Tenafly NJ; 5 grandchildren and 3 great-grandchildren.
She was beloved grandmother “Grandma ‘Rene” to Lauren (Polakoff) Schwartz (Andrew), Los Angeles CA; Robert Polakoff (Stephanie), NYC; Julie (Zeveloff) West (Scott), NYC; Dennis Zeveloff, Princeton NJ; and Brandon Polakoff (Perry), NYC.
She was adoring great-grandmother “GG ‘Rene” to Hallie (age 5) and Derek (age 2) Schwartz, Los Angeles; Mason West (age 1), NYC; and a baby soon to arrive to Robby and Steph. (GG “Rene had already seen his ultrasound photo and patted him as he kicked).
Memorial Contributions are respectfully requested to:
Parkinson’s Foundation https://www.parkinson.org/ways-to-give
The Jewish Center, Princeton – Rabbi’s Discretionary Fund
Temple Sinai of Bergen County – Rabbi’s Discretionary Fund; Cantor’s Music Fund
Temple Am Echad (formerly Temple Emanu-El of Lynbrook -Irene’s congregation for 50 years) One Saperstein Place, Lynbrook, NY 11563
Greenwood House – non-profit; elder care services, assisted living; (609) 883-5391 www.GreenwoodHouse.org
Jewish Family & Children’s Services – (877)408-JFCS (5327), (609)987-8100; www.jfcsonline.org
Teachers College of Columbia University – Irene Shklarin Polakoff, M.A.1948 https://www.tc.columbia.edu/giving
or a charity of donor’s choice.