ALAN CORNELL Obituary

CORNELL--Alan, beloved husband of Jane, devoted father of Michael and Kimberly Cornell, Lauren and Jason Lazar, cherished grandfather to Chloe and Zac Cornell, Emma and Hudson Lazar, lit up the room with his smile and laughter. He was a philanthropist whose integrity, humility, wisdom, and love of life inspired everyone he met. He credited his parents' legacy of surviving the Holocaust with shaping the way he lived his life: a positive attitude, commitment to family, Israel, and Jewish causes. May his memory be a blessing for all.

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Published by New York Times on Apr. 19, 2020.

Memories and Condolences
for ALAN CORNELL

11 Entries

Mordechai Weiss

April 13, 2021

The past year without question has been a challenging one for so many. We so miss the strength, kindness and humor which Alan shared with us. His Legacy is his beautiful family. In honor of Alan's Yahrtzeit, let us rededicate ourselves to his ideals. May his Neshama have an Aliyah. With Love.

Suzanne Verduijn

July 29, 2020

I'm a great granddaughter of Cornelis Verduijn, where Alan's parents (then Ernst and Frieda Cohn) were in hiding over 2 years during the holocaust. When they emigrated to the US they took the name Cornell, after my great grandfather Cornelis who harbored them during most of the war. My father still lives in that house, I grew up there.

Because Alan donated his parents photo albums and scrapbooks to the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in 2018 (which are available online), I was able to find pictures that his parents kept of my (great)grandparents and grandaunts in Ede, the Netherlands, during WWII. One was taken in the exact room I'm in now.

Alans father Ernest flew back to the Netherlands in 1956 to say a final goodbye to my great grandfather as he was dying. They kept in touch with my great aunts for a while after that.
Thanks to his parents and perhaps also Alan himself, my great grandparents and grand aunt were posthumously honored as “Righteous Among the Nations” by Yad Vashem in 2017 (applied for in the 80s, it took a while to process).

I'm very sad to hear of his passing, I'm unfortunately too late to thank him for his work. I found a lot of old albums in this house (on the Otterloseweg in Ede, their hiding place for 26 months) by my great aunts, I've seen some correspondence of Ernest and Frida Cornell and also other pictures that were taken around the same time as the pictures in the 'Adler and Cohn families papers' donations of the USHMM. If Alans next of kin might be interested in that, I'd be happy to get in touch via Facebook or Gmail (both are 'suzanneverduijn').

Best wishes to all,
Suzanne Verduijn

Marty Cross

April 30, 2020

Jane...I was so very sad to hear about Alan. He always made my job easy by making "Insurance" talk so much fun. What a great sense of humor. I will miss him. Please know my thoughts and prayers are with you and your family. Take care of each other. Marty

Scott Frank

April 23, 2020

My condolences to the Cornell family. Alan was a great mentor and one of the fairest people I have known. A great man. He will be missed.

Estie and Lior Cohn

April 22, 2020

Alan, our dearest loved cousin, was for us not only a member of the family, but a kind, generous, clever and loyal friend. We shall miss him and his wonderful spirit and charisma, and will remember him with love as long as we live.

Mordechai Weiss

April 20, 2020

I considered Alan to be one of my closest friends. He was always there for me. A great friend. A great family man. A man whose Jewish identity was an integral part of his being. Not for naught did we nickname him lovingly "Rabbi". I will miss him.

Barbara and Larry Kopp

April 19, 2020

Sending our condolences to the Cornell family . We remember Alan from Woodcliff Lake and Jason and Lauren's wedding.
Barbara and Larry Kopp

Gail Asarch

April 19, 2020

It is with great sadness we say goodbye to our dear friend Alan .We shared many memories together. His sense of humor and gigantic laugh made Alan unique. You could hear this laugh across a crowded room and knew it was him. Alan cared and demonstrated it by his philanthropy and his commitment to Israel and the Jewish people. He was one of the GOOD GUYS. Our deepest condolence to the Cornel family and to our dear friend Jane. We will miss him!!!
All our love..Gail Meyer Asarch and Jim Satovsky

Maureen Margolin

April 19, 2020

We just heard the very sad news of Alans passing. The Margolin family sends deep sympathy and love to the Cornell family at this difficult time. We remember you warmly as our friends and neighbors in Woodcliff Lake. May Alans love for his family sustain and keep you.

Gail Asarch Jim Satovsky

April 19, 2020

It is with great sadness we say goodbye to our dear friend Alan.So many wonderfuls times together and funny memories.Alan's sense of humor and his gigantic laugh were unique to him.Alan made a difference in this world.He cared and demonstrated those feelings over and over again by his
philanthropy and commitment to Israel and the Jewish people.Our deepest condolences Gail Asarch and Jimmy Satovsky

April 19, 2020

Alan, married to my cousin Janie, was a fine, distinguished man, whom all of us in Geneva (Switzerland), loved, respected, and admired. We express our sincere condolences to Janie and to Michael and Lauren and their families, and wish them all long life, in the time-honoured Jewish tradition

Sev S. Fluss, Geneva

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