Miki "Minnie" Romanow

1924 - 2017

Miki (Minnie) Romanow, 92
DELRAY BEACH, Fla. - Miki (Minnie) Romanow, beloved wife, mother, sister, aunt and grandmother, passed peacefully in Delray Beach, Fla. on Jan. 7, 2017.
Miki was born in Brooklyn, NY on June 25, 1924, the daughter of Jacob and Yetta Jaworniker, and was married to her beloved husband Ben for 51 years until his passing in 2012. Together they raised two sons, Josh and Jason, and a baby daughter, Faith, who predeceased them. They lived in Portland and were active in the community for many years until retiring together to Florida, and continued to spend summers in Maine.
She attended Franklin K. Lane High School in Brooklyn, and was a proud member of the Arista National Honor Society. After finishing school, she went to work at an early age at United Merchants and Manufacturers in New York City, entering the business world before it was common to do so.
A few years later, Miki met the "love of her life", Ben Romanow, who was visiting New York on his way to Europe on the Queen Mary, and they were married in 1961. Although a big city girl at heart who loved to tell stories about growing up in Brooklyn with her sisters Cele and Frieda, Miki was won over by the charm and beauty of Maine and the love of her husband and moved to Portland shortly after marrying to begin their life together.
She later joined the family business, Romanow Furniture, and especially enjoyed working with younger couples who were starting new lives on their own. She also lectured at Weight Watchers for several years and inspired others with her stories.
Miki was devoted to her family, faith and community and was a lifetime member of Jewish Home for the Aged (now Cedars); Brandeis National Women's Committee; Mizrahi Women's Organization/ AMIT; and the Shaarey Tphiloh Synagogue and sisterhood, where she spent several years as a "roving reporter" covering synagogue and sisterhood events. When her children were school age, she organized with other interested parents and helped start K'ton Ton Nursery School at the synagogue, and later the Levey Hebrew Day School. In Florida, she was a member of Temple Anshei Sholom, active in the Rosh Chodesh Club, and continued to support many charitable causes.
Miki leaves a legacy of love, wisdom and strength - and her many special dishes like matzah ball soup, fricassee and gazpacho that she would have waiting every time family would visit and took pride in keeping a kosher home. She enjoyed being with family and friends, music, books, tennis, golf and was a top Scrabble player and avid sports fan, closely following the Red Sox, Celtics, Miami Heat and Patriots with her children and grandchildren. She kept with the times, embracing the internet and email and keeping up with the latest news, watching her investments online, and frequent video chats with her grandchildren, while still continuing to value handwritten letters.
She is survived by her children Josh and Jennifer Romanow and their children Benjamin and Lilah, of Arlington, Va.; Jason and Kara Romanow and their children, Carly and Jake, of Sharon, Mass.; sister Cele Axelrod; brother-in-law Harold and his wife Florence Romanow; several nieces, nephews, cousins; and many friends whose lives and hearts she touched for many years.
Funeral services will be held at the Levey Chapel, 471 Deering Ave. in Portland, Maine at 12:00 noon on Tuesday Jan. 10. The family will observe Shiva at Etz Chaim Synagogue, 267 Congress Street in Portland from 2:00 to 4:00 p.m. following the burial. Arrangements by Portland Jewish Funeral Home.

In lieu of flowers, the family asks that "expressions of sympathy" or "remembrances" be made to:
American Macular
Degeneration Foundation
(www.macular.org) or:
Alzheimer's Association
(www.alz.org)