EDNA NELKIN

NELKIN--Edna (Rubenstein),

well known jewelry designer and retailer born in 1920, died March 30, 2018. She was predeceased by Morton Nelkin, her husband of 66 years. Her career spanned 30 years, both in Brooklyn and later on Madison Avenue in Manhattan. Her creativity spanned many areas of crafts, including painting and stitchery design. She had written four books, a book of poems, and created a film, all of which are in the YIVO archives for Jewish research. Her book Come Sit Beside Me, was a memoir reflecting her rich and diverse life. Her writings were included in the University of Oregon Press for literature in retirement in 2004-2005, and she was a paid correspondent for the Miami Herald. She was her family's historian and archivist, having created two major reunions with several hundred members attending from all parts of the world. She leaves her sons, David of Eugene, Oregon and James of the Bronx, daughters-in-law, Andrea and Linda, grandchildren, Matthew (Desiree Miller) and Sarah (Anthony Medrano), and great-grandchildren, Noah and Lucas. She created a heritage weekend for her mother's scattered family members in 1982; this observance continues today as outstanding generational gatherings, thanks to her family leadership. She cared for the planet, supporting it with her mini-philanthropies - hunger, women's issues, equality and ethics; a passion for the right thing was the core of her life, trying to fix the world never ended. She was a sharer of whatever she wanted you to taste, to touch, to have, whether she had it, painted it, wove it, cooked it or wore it. She was a writer of books with her heartbeat on every page. Every project she undertook was totally all giving and formed with passion. She lived in love with life. Services Tuesday 11:30am at "The Riverside", 76th St. and Amsterdam Ave.`