Karl Straus

Karl was our friend. Gracie and I will miss him. Although he is gone, he will be present and remembered as long as we live.

Bernie and Gracie Conrad

My husband Tom and I knew Karl for the last 36 years of his life. Most significantly, I knew him as a man thoroughly in love with his wonderful wife, Sylvia, who loved him equally in return, and who provided him with a well grounded sounding board for his very active mind. I am sure they are together again after only this brief separation since Sylvia passed. Karl had a great sense of humor and, it seems to me, he lived his life fully, with intensity and great focus. It was our pleasure to...

To Hank, Lisa, Joel and your families,

I only knew your father from our yearly Straus clan X-mas gatherings in Brevard as a youth. After reading his obituary, I realize there was much I didn't know about Karl and I can say that I'm proud to have known such an amazing human being . . . such a stalwart, compassionate and contributing member of society.

Two years after Harry Straus helped your father into this country to escape the Nazis, he helped my father into the US for the...

My late husband, Albert Hargrove, and Karl were friends for many years. We were friends with Karl and Sylvia but sadly lost touch after my second marriage. They will always have a special place in my heart. Only recently I came across snapshots of the four of us and they brought back happy times we had together. Time goes by so fast and the hardest thing I have delt with as I get older is the loss of so many friends and loved ones.

May God be with the children, grandchildren and...

Though it has been many years since I saw Mr. Straus, I have such fond memories of him and Mrs. Straus. As Mr. Straus was my grandfather's friend and attorney, he and Mrs. Straus were fixtures at company Christmas parties and family gatherings. They danced at our weddings and celebrated major birthdays with us. As a child, I thought of them as extended family, and they treated us as such, too. They're kindness and genuine interest in what I had to say always made me feel significant and cared...

Karl was a kind and gentle man, anytime we met a smile would be on his face and he would be ready to share a witticism with his friend. A moral man whose priorities were his faith in God, family and Asheville the city he loved.
A very close friend and role model will be missed.