Pamela Relkin, of Silver Spring, passed away on March 10. She was 86. Pamela was born in 1936 in England to Jack (a tailor) and Katie Felberg. She had two older brothers, Manny and Peter, and a younger sister, Lillian. During the second world war, they were sent to the tube (subway) to take cover from the bombs and often sleep. They would come out afterwards to see what was still standing. Pam’s brothers, who were school age at the time, were sent to the “country” about a 30-minute car ride from London in order to be safe. When a bomb killed a child who was standing next to her brother, her parents moved with the girls out to the country so they could all be together.
Pamela did very well at school and went to Sir Williams Perkins Grammar School in Chertsey, England. She would have gone on to university, however, she felt she needed to work instead in order to be able to help her parents. While in school, she worked at a beer bottling company checking the bottles for spots.
She met her husband, Murray Relkin, when he was in the U.S. Army. He was stationed in Germany and was on a few days leave to travel. They met at an international dance in London. He asked her to dance and she noticed the BBG Heartthrob menorah pin on his lapel, so she asked if he was Jewish. She invited him to her parents for a home-cooked Shabbat dinner as she doubted he’d had one since being in the Army. They dated for the week, corresponded for two months and then he proposed in a letter and a phone call. They were married in England surrounded by family and friends and then she followed him to America.
She was transferred to the D.C. office of B’nai B’rith. Later she started her own bookkeeping, accounting and tax business.
She served as the bookkeeper for Pioneer Women Na’amat/Na’amat USA both in the Dimona chapter and for the region for many years and won the Woman of the Year award. She greatly enjoyed being part of their chavurah at Har Tzeon-Agudath Achim for more than 40 years. She loved needlepoint and was involved in the Pomegranate Guild of Judaic Needlework.
She is survived by her sister, Lillian Kirsch; her husband, Murray Relkin; her children, Andrew Relkin and Stacey Relkin (Jeffrey) Winkler; and her grandchildren, Eli, Leah and Samuel Winkler.
