On March 16, Barbara Grad of Washington, D.C. The daughter of a D.C. rabbi and a social worker, Dr. Hymen Ezra Cohen and Alice Pathman Cohen respectively, Barbara was imbued from an early age with a love for and the importance of family, education and Judaism. These core values were central to her life. Barbara’s talents and interests ranged widely. A gifted artist, she chose to sublimate her creativity into raising her children, shaping their moral and ethical lives, and sharing with them an appreciation for the power of the arts and a love of the beautiful and sublime. As a young woman, she received a Fulbright award and studied art in India and Japan. She worked as a teacher and administrator in multiple capacities; as a public school administrator in Washington, D.C.; as the head of the in-plant training division for the Israel Productivity Institute in Tel Aviv to improve worker efficiency and productivity; and as a teacher at the Jewish day school in Rochester, N.Y. For some years, she worked as a real estate agent and broker in Rochester.
As those who knew her could attest, she was a fighter. She fought for the causes she believed in, and was a proud supporter of Israel and Jewish causes. Bringing together her compassion and sense of justice, and her deep love of reading, she fought for opportunity for the disadvantaged, volunteering and donating to efforts to promote literacy. She loved life and she fought hard to overcome every challenge she faced. She loved being with her family, her greatest source of joy, and protected them, encouraged them, and loved them with all her heart.
She is survived by her husband, Dan; her children Peter (Fran) Nuchims, Karene (Ned) Steiner and Yonatan Grad; her grandchildren Drew and Anna Nuchims, and Zipporah Steiner; her siblings Judith, Joel and David, and many nieces and nephews. She is irreplaceable. She is missed.
