Harry Rubin

RUBIN, Harry Born in New York, September 29, 1913, Harry died in Santa Monica, June 8, 2008. Harry was the husband of the late Sophie Rubin. He will be missed by his daughter Karen Weinstein, grandsons Eric and Bret Weinstein, four great-grandchildren: Naila, Zachary, Zev, and Toby, and his son-in-law Les Weinstein. Beyond family, Harry is survived by the many other people whose lives he touched and whose eyes he opened. During retirement from his career as a chemist Harry became an enthusiastic member of the Plato Society at UCLA. From his passion for intergenerational learning he created the Honors Student Program within Plato inviting UCLA honor students to participate in the Plato Study Discussion Group/seminars. First greeted as a "Mickey" by the young students, the program has flourished and become a student favorite. They uniformly describe the seminar/discussion groups as rich, intellectual experiences. His greatest pleasure in life was to open the eyes and broaden the thinking of as many young people as he could reach. He continued to inspire through his 94th year.
Harry's grandsons, Eric and Bret who pursued graduate studies in Mathematics and Biology, consider him to be a major influence leading them to their scientific interests and questioning. Eric dedicated his doctoral thesis in mathematics to his grandfather. From his days as an undergraduate at UCLA - and often at great personal cost - Harry never held back an opinion or ceased to question the establishment or the status quo. He stood true to his beliefs in free speech, and a utopian world in which education would unlock possibilities for all, banish economic disparities, and war would become obsolete, only to appear in history books. The question he considered seminal was "what does it mean to be human?" Ultimately he summed it up with a single phrase, "to be compassionate." He will be missed by many. In lieu of flowers the family requests donations be sent to: UC Regents/ Plato Society, in honor of Harry Rubin, founder of the Plato Society Honor Student program, 1083 Gayley, Los Angeles, CA 90024. A memorial will be held in the Fall.