Liliane Clairette Samuel

1922 - 2020

Liliane Clairette Samuel, 98, of Memphis, Tennessee passed away on June 26, 2020. She was born in Colmar, France on April 14, 1922. She was the daughter of Emma Ebstein Samuel and Emmanuel Samuel. Liliane spent her youth with her family, including her younger sister, Nicole, in Brussels, Belgium. She shared a loving relationship with her large and extensive family, including many aunts, uncles, and cousins who were especially attentive when Liliane lost her father in 1936. She was educated at the French Speaking Lycee in Brussels. With the help of her cousins and much savvy, Liliane and her mother and sister were able to escape Belgium during World War II, hiding out in several small villages in France, successfully evading the Nazis. After the War, the family returned to Brussels where Liliane worked for several years. She moved to New York with her mother in the mid-1950s and joined Nicole who came to the United States as a Fulbright Scholar. Liliane worked for a time at several embassies and as a medical secretary at Mount Sinai Hospital. Liliane was highly self-educated in the field of fine artwork. She went on to a successful career at Paul Rosenberg & Company, a distinguished art gallery in New York. She served as an Executive Assistant to Alexandre Rosenberg at the gallery until her retirement in 1987. Liliane remained active in New York and traveled every summer to visit her relatives in Belgium and France and included an extended vacation at her favorite resort in Weggis, Switzerland. She was in a cemetery in Strasbourg, France on 9/11 and she decided to end her travels abroad. Liliane moved to Memphis about 12 years ago to be closer to her sister Nicole who has been in Memphis since 1964. She lived at the Embassy for several years and moved to The Trezevant Manor Assisted Living 3 years ago. She resided at The Memphis Jewish Home & Rehab for a brief time.

Liliane is survived by her beloved sister and brother-in-law, Nicole and Jack Lewis of Memphis. She is also survived by her niece, Georgi Lewis Davis (Lowell) of North Brunswick, New Jersey, and her nephew Hal Lewis (Jean) of Germantown, Tennessee. Liliane also leaves behind many wonderful and generous cousins in Brussels, Belgium, and others in New York, London, France, and Israel. She also leaves behind six great-nephews and four great-nieces and 1 great-great-niece and 3 great-great-nephews.

The family would like to thank the staff at the Trezevant Manor Assisted Living, The Allen Morgan Health as well as the staff at The Memphis Jewish Home and Rehab and Crossroads Hospice for their care over the past few years and weeks. A very special thank you to her wonderful and attentive group of devoted caregivers whose kindness and compassion greatly improved the quality of her life in her final years: Linda Henry, Patrice McCullough, Janice Robinson, Yolanda Adams, Shirley Evans, Etta Wolf, and Brenda.

A private graveside service was held on Monday, June 29, at Baron Hirsch Cemetery in Memphis.