Michael Howard Sandalow

Michael Howard (Mordechai Tzvi) Sandalow: August 18, 1940 - February 23, 2026

Michael Sandalow, loving father, husband, zaide, brother, uncle, teacher, and friend, died on February 23 at the age of 85. Proudly born in Chicago to Evelyn (nee Hoffing) and Nathan Sandalow, Michael was a brilliant and profoundly kind man who engaged those around him with his intellectual passion and genuine interest in sharing knowledge with others. He will be missed by the many loved ones, pupils, and friends who learned from his lessons and example.

Michael had an enduring love of learning and teaching about a wide range of interests, from linguistics to physics and philosophy. Into his eighties, he read academic articles, attended lectures at the University of Chicago (his alma mater), and developed his own, well-supported theories about the different motivations of the authors of the Bible. For thirty years, Michael taught American and World history at Lafayette High School in Brooklyn, and even after he formally retired, he continued to teach history and math in Chicago. He was a teacher not just to his students, but also to his children, nieces and nephews, grandchildren, and fellow members of his synagogue, challenging each to think and develop intellectually.

As a teenager, Michael developed a keen interest in Jewish ritual, thought, and history. Michael embodied the Jewish tradition of wrestling with God; he did not accept received wisdom, but rather grappled with and questioned the Torah, the Talmud, and other rabbinic writings. He was an active member of Ezra-Habonim synagogue, where he celebrated a second Bar Mitzvah shortly after his 83rd birthday. In his D'var Torah, Michael reflected on the changes he'd witnessed since his first Bar Mitzvah seventy years earlier, and in typically pedagogical fashion, he invited the gathered congregation to share their thoughts and hopes for the seventy years to come.

Beyond his engagement with Jewish life, Michael was also committed to his broader community. He was a lifelong member of his teachers' union and was heavily involved in local politics in Brooklyn. In 1976, the local Democratic club nominated Michael to mount a progressive primary challenge to the incumbent state assemblyman. Though Michael did not make it to Albany, he secured the endorsements of Representatives Bella Abzug and Elizabeth Holtzman.

Michael maintained a lifelong fascination with people and cultures, and a passion for intellectual debate. He was fond of striking up conversations with fellow patrons at his local coffeeshop, and through those conversations, he cultivated an eclectic group of friends with whom he regularly engaged in spirited discussions about religion and politics. Even as his health declined, he maintained a deep yet playful curiosity about the world around him. While at the park with his grandchildren, he once asked a nearby group of cricket players to explain the game, and then proceeded to join them for a few swings at the bat.

Michael loved and excelled at making learning fun. He took many road trips across the country with his family, stopping at every point of interest to share his encyclopedic knowledge of American history and encouraging his children and grandchildren to pass the time in the backseat by memorizing all of the US presidents in chronological order. No landmark, be it a cannon captured during the Spanish American war or an empty off-season MLB stadium, was too obscure to visit. And, when he couldn't physically drive with you to a faraway state, Michael would happily eat a piece of American cheese into the shape of one.

While Michael enjoyed traveling to new places, he made sure to return every summer to his beloved Michiana, a town he first visited with his parents and siblings and later shared with his children and grandchildren. Swimming in Lake Michigan (after a lengthy temperature-acclimation period), playing tennis at the local park, climbing the nearby sand dunes, and stopping at the local ice cream shop became cherished annual traditions for four generations of Sandalows.

Throughout his life, Michael was devoted to his family. He loved nothing more than spending time with his children and grandchildren: playing baseball or chess, asking specific questions about school, discussing Chicago sports, and debating politics long past everyone's bedtimes. Michael attended every parent-teacher conference, sports game, and performance, and he always encouraged his children and grandchildren to show up for one another. But his most unique love language was driving for hours - sometimes to an entirely different city - to pick up one of his loved ones from the airport.

Michael was a loving father to Sharon (Joel), Yitzi, Sholom (Emily), and Nathan (Irene), husband to Naomi, zaide to Rachel (Danny), Nathaniel (Jenny), David, Yoel, Eli, Abe, Henry, Lila, Nava, and Kaia, brother to Terry (Ina), Barbara (Stan), Ady (Louie), Barry (Eileen), and Yudi, and uncle to many nieces and nephews. We will all carry his wisdom and love for the rest of our lives.

Michael believed deeply in building a more just and equal world. Every year, he led a thought-provoking Passover seder, where he encouraged participants of all ages - including the youngest children - to engage with our traditions and how our Jewish values inform the present moment. The Passover story teaches us to welcome the stranger, for we were strangers in the land of Egypt. So, in Michael's honor, we ask that donations be sent to the Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society, which supports and advocates for refugees and asylum seekers in the United States and around the world: https://hias.org. Donations may also be sent in Michael's honor to the American Heart Association: www.heart.org/en.

The funeral will take place on Thursday, February 26, at 12:00pm, at Ezra-Habonim, the Niles Township Jewish Congregation, 4500 Dempster Street, Skokie, IL.

Burial will follow at the Waldheim Cemetery in Forest Park, IL.

To attend the funeral livestream, please visit our website. Arrangements by Chicago Jewish Funerals - Skokie Chapel, 847.229.8822, www.cjfinfo.com.