Harriet W. Sherber

1923 - 2016

Harriet W. Sherber July 24, 1923 - May 25, 2016 Encinitas Harriet was born July 24, 1923, in Vienna, Austria. She was the older of two daughters born to Fritz and Paula (Pick) Wertheimer. On New Years Day 1939, Harriet Sherber arrived in the United States after leaving the Nazi controlled Austria. She married Murray Sherber on April 22, 1941, in New York City. Harriet and her husband, Murray arrived in Oklahoma in 1942. After a number of moves throughout the state, including a stop in Muskogee, she and Murray eventually settled in Tulsa in 1956, where Murray opened Ranch Acres Veterinary Hospital. Harriet spent many years working in the veterinary practice while also raising their two children. She had a lifelong love for animals and enjoyed keeping many pets in the home throughout her years in Tulsa. She volunteered as a docent at Gilcrease museum for 17 years and was part of the Holocaust Education program in Tulsa, as well as traveling throughout Oklahoma and Arkansas to educate high school students about the Holocaust. During their 73 years of marriage, she and her husband traveled the world extensively, visiting 57 countries during her lifetime. In 2005, Lauren Smith wrote an essay about her, called "Red Tulips", which won the Grand Prize in a nationwide essay contest. Murray and Harriet moved to Encinitas, CA, to be closer to family in September 2011. She is survived by her sister, Ora Mendoza of Jerusalem, Israel; her children, Karen (Sid) Zisook and Steven Sherber both of San Diego, CA; four grandchildren: Stephanie (Andrew) Weiss, Dan (Kerry) Zisook, and Rebecca (Jason) Morse all of California, and Ben (Jennifer) Sherber of Kansas; nine great-grandchildren; and five nieces and nephews also survive her. In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations be made to the Multiple Sclerosis Society or the Anti Defamation League.