JACOB LUSTIG

JACOB LUSTIG
In Memoriam

Our family mourns the loss of our beloved son and brother, Jacob, a beautiful soul. Extraordinarily spiritual, Jacob loved the woods, was completely anti-materialistic and questioned modern society with all of its conventions and rules. Jacob lived in Prague, Czech Republic, until age eleven, when he moved to Arlington, Virginia. Growing up in Prague, he played ice hockey from early childhood and continued through adulthood. Keenly intuitive in math, Jacob graduated from the Honors College at George Mason University with a double major in both Applied and Theoretical Mathematics, as well as minors in Economics and Computer Science. He also spent two terms studying at Oxford University in England, and worked at an Arab newspaper during a summer internship in Nazareth, Israel.

Fluent in Czech and English, and conversational in Hebrew, Arabic and Russian, Jacob was fascinated by languages, picked them up quickly, and enjoyed the new perspective that speaking another language could bring, even learning the Armenian and Georgian alphabets. He played the guitar, accordion, and on the piano, he truly "played" - improvising pieces and flipping iconic works back and forth between major and minor keys, inverting them and altering their rhythms - Bizet's Carmen, Tchaikovsky's Nutcracker, Mozart's Rondo alla Turca, to name a few. Jacob loved all animals, especially his pet bunny. His compassionate spirit was deeply connected to animals and nature, leading him to live a clean and natural lifestyle - he did not consume animal products nor engage in any activity that endangered other creatures or the environment, regularly picking up litter on his many hikes. Always inquisitive and intellectually curious, he also loved games (chess was a favorite), puzzles, mathematical conundrums, and often spoke in riddles.

Jacob had been on a spiritual journey and had worked his way across the country to San Francisco. Aware of those less fortunate, he felt moved to see and experience life as it was lived by the homeless and marginalized... He was searching for what gives meaning and purpose to life. He died peacefully in his sleep of natural causes on October 16, 2020. Jacob was a gentle, thoughtful soul, and our family is shocked and devastated at the loss of him - our cherished first child, the oldest of five wonderful kids, and an absolutely unique, remarkable, and brilliant person. He was only 26. Jacob leaves behind his parents, Josef Lustig and Ann Schlesinger, and four siblings - Tess, Rachel, Rebecca and Max. A private service was held on October 22 at Cypress Lawn Funeral Home and Memorial Park in Colma, California. In lieu of flowers, a donation can be made to a charity of your choice that either protects nature or helps the local homeless community, in Jacob's honor.