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Sidney Forman Obituary
Sidney Forman CHESAPEAKE - Sidney "Sid" Forman, 95, stood his final roll call with the supreme commander-in-chief Aug. 19, 2008. Sidney Forman was born in Brooklyn (Brownsville), N.Y., to Samuel and Ida Forman in 1913. He was one of three brothers who included Abraham and Morris. Sid attended school in New York and worked as a cobbler/shoemaker until he enlisted in the U.S. Army in 1939. Sid served in the Coast Artillery, which brought him to the Tidewater area just after the bombing of Pearl Harbor. Sid and his fellow soldiers' job were to set up anti-aircraft gun positions to protect the vital port of Hampton Roads. Sid met his future wife, Pearl Decker, at the USO in Norfolk. Pearl was a hostess at the USO and she took him home to meet her parents. Pearl's mother, Jennie, cooked a big steak for Sid with all the trimmings and Sid was hooked! With meat rationing in effect, you can imagine how lucky he felt! He would never get a steak like that in the Army! Sid was reassigned to the field artillery and sent overseas to North Africa in 1942. After North Africa, he participated in the landings in Sicily, Italy and Normandy. When Germany surrendered in 1945, Sid was scheduled to be sent to the Pacific to continue the fight against the Japanese, but told his commanding officer that although he loved the Army and wanted to make it a career he wanted to get home to marry his beloved Pearl. Sid and Pearl were married in Norfolk in 1945 and made Norfolk their lifelong home. Sid and Pearl worked in retail with Pearl's father, Ben in the old City Market in downtown Norfolk. After the City Market closed Sid worked with various grocery chains in the Tidewater area until he went to work for the federal government. Sid worked for Naval Facilities Engineering Command, Norfolk, as an engineering technician for more than 20 years. He and Pearl traveled around the U.S. and "snowbirded" in Florida each year. Sid's hobbies included reading, saltwater fishing, watching baseball and football. Sid was an avid Redskins fan. Sid is survived by his wife, Pearl of 62 years and two sons, Edward A. "Ed" Forman of Virginia Beach and Jeffrey M. Forman and his wife Pat of Chesapeake. Sid will be buried in a private ceremony at Forest Lawn Cemetery, Norfolk, with military honors. Altmeyer Funeral Home, Greenwich Road chapel, Virginia Beach, will be handling arrangements. Rabbi Rosalin Mandelberg and Rabbi Lawrence A. Forman, Ohef Sholem Temple, Norfolk, will be conducting the graveside service. The family will sit Shiva at Ed Forman's house, 5868 Echingham Drive, Virginia Beach, VA 23464. The family wishes to extend their heartfelt appreciation to the staff at Atlantic Shores, Seaside Health Facility, and Heartland Hospice, Virginia Beach for their outstanding assistance in caring for Sid. In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations in Sid's name be made to the Foodbank of Southeastern Virginia, P.O. Box 1940, Norfolk, VA 23501 or the Virginia Beach SPCA, 3040 Holland Road, Virginia Beach, VA 23453. Sid was liked by all whom he met during his journey in life. Condolences may be offered to the family at www.altmeyer.com.
Memories and Condolences
for Sidney Forman
6 Entries
Joe Price-O'Brien (formerly O'Brien)
November 29, 2017
In 1969 as a first-semester engineering student at Old Dominion College, I had worked since 1968 as a part-time Produce Clerk at the Food Fair Grocery store at 25th and Colley, Store Manager Mr. Clark, and walked to college from the store at nights and took the Norfolk Public Transit bus home to Norview after classes. By the time my DMV "penance" had expired six months after turning over to the court my driver's license for two consecutive speeding violations, with license fresh-in-hand, I had an opportunity to drive to the recently opened "Flagship" Be-Lo Food Store which was situated on St. Pauls Boulevard in downtown Norfolk, across the street from the Norfolk Scope Arena, to apply for a job as a Produce Clerk. There I met with Sidney "Sid" Forman, who was at that time the store's Produce Manager, and who said he was in need of an Assistant Produce Manager. Following a brief interview, Sid decided that I "fit-the-bill" and hired me, and together we kept the Produce Department in tip-top shape. From my meager beginnings in Produce at Food Fair without any formal training, at the Flagship Be-Lo Food Store, Sid guided and mentored me and taught me skills that I had never learned at the other store as a lowly Produce Clerk. Sid gave me the surprise of my life when he bestowed upon me the title of "Frozen Foods Manager", which in this store was under the jurisdiction of the Produce Manager. Each week, in addition to my daily Produce Department responsibilities, on Wednesdays I was responsible for inventorying and re-stocking the Frozen Food "walk-ins" (store personnel only) and the Frozen Food "reach-ins" (aka floor display cases) in order to place orders to rebuild inventory to standard levels to prevent "sell-outs". Inventorying was a skill I learned from my dad, a US Navy Storekeeper, as a pre-teen while living for two years on the island of Eleuthera, in the Bahamas, where my dad was stationed at the US Naval Facility, and later from Sid, as my Manager, as a young adult while working in the Be-Lo Food Store. In the Bahamas, as a kid, it was almost a "play-activity" to do inventory, like a board-game; in the "Flagship" Be-Lo store, it was serious business as I was entrusted to manage the Frozen Foods walk-in and reach-in inventory "spit-spot". I became aware of each Frozen Food item, and in keeping the display cases at top-level while rotating all items "freshest at the bottom, oldest at the top", per Sid's instructions. After a few weeks of inventory and rebuilding stock, I asked Sid if it would be okay to diversify the Frozen Foods "frozen dinners offers" by adding some new items to increase the variety available to the customers: the more variety, the greater the sales, or so I thought. Sid, never the naysayer, provided me the opportunity to "allow the winds-of-chance to direct my own sails", and I proceeded to add newer items to the Frozen Food offerings. Initially, there was some movement of the newer items, but said movement became sluggish and when I observed that many of the newer items were just not selling well, or at all, I realized that Sid's allowing me to make inventory decisions was his opportunity to teach me a lesson on not only supply-and-demand, but also cause-and-effect, as the customers at this store were already pretty decided on what they considered their "favorites", and after the initial surge in variety sales, they had returned to their "favorites", leaving the new items behind. Tucking my tail between my legs, weekly I began to purchase the new items for myself in order to deplete the variety inventory, and to return to only ordering customer "favorites" as it would restrict the customer's being forced to make decisions on such broad choices and would improve their ability to purchase only what they were already focused upon without distractions. I must admit that most of the variety items which I purchased were very tasty to me, and highly edible, but as long as they did not tease the palates of the regular customers, I realized that I had learned a very valuable lesson: Sid taught me "Marketing 101" by allowing me to better understand the underlying principles of cause-and-effect, regardless of supply-and-demand. As I had become a US Naval Reservist in 1968, while still in High School, and my US Naval Reserve Training Center was unable to get me a billet to attend US Navy Electronics Technician School in Great Lakes, Illinois, in light of the ongoing conflict in the former "French Indochina" and the exodus of young military personnel toward Vietnam, I decided to enlist in the US Navy, to avoid being drafted into the US Army from already being a US Naval Reservist, and with that, Sid and I parted company in mid-summer of 1970, as I was sworn-in on July 30, 1970, to become a US Navy Electronics Technician, and to "allow the winds-of-chance to direct my own sails". To that end, in addition to the heartfelt thanks which I gave to Sid on our splitting-up, today I continue to offer my heartfelt thanks to Sid for having taken me under his wing and for providing me with opportunities which I would never have had without his compassionate management skills. Thank you, Bless You, and I Salute You, Sidney Forman, may you rest-in-peace. Joe Price-O'Brien (formerly O'Brien).
August 21, 2008
I will not forget you.....
Karen Medina
August 21, 2008
My thoughts and prayers are with you in your time of grief. May your memories bring you comfort.
Nori Darden
August 20, 2008
"Pop" you went home in style. You and Pearl had a good life. we will miss you.
Ed Forman
August 20, 2008
Pop: Thanks for everything and best of luck on your journey! Dress it right and cover down, 40 inches all around!
Love,
Ed
Tony Amato
August 20, 2008
Rest in the peace and love of Gods arms.
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