Summary(00:40) Isaac born in 1926 and Sally in 1945. Family from Aleppo, Syria. Their father came to the US in 1914, settled first in Bronx, than Lower East Side than Bensonhurst -- (04:30) Isaac went to Public School and Hebrew afterschool 4 hours a day, five days a week. Mother cooked both Syrian food and American. Got married, has 4 daughters, moved to Ocean Parkway -- (08:47) Was in the Navy in the Pacific in 1945 --(10:00) growing in Bensonhurst in 30s with no technology, not many cars, no television. Shabath observers in a small community from Aleppo. Issac's children attended public school, received Masters and became more American than Syrian -- (14:00) Sally grew up in 60s in Bensonhurst. Everything they needed was in the block. Children played safely in the streets. No vacations -- (20:00) At 30, Isaac became a cantor (hazan). Newer generations retain 100-year-old traditions of prayer from Syria -- (21:20) Preserves traditions and cooking from Syria learned from her mother.
NoteTitle supplied by cataloger. Audio interview conducted 2019 October 29 by Ariane Loeb. Collected through the Brooklyn Collection Jewish History Project of Brooklyn Public Library. This project is funded by the David Berg Foundation.
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TitleA Syrian Jewish family. Oral history interview with Sally and Isaac conducted on October 29, 2019.
Biographical NoteThe family of Isaac and his younger sister Sally is from Aleppo, Syria. Their father, Jacob, arrived in the United States in 1914, and first lived in the Bronx. He married Mollie and moved to the Lower East Side. They eventually settled in Bensonhurst in a small Syrian Jewish Community from Aleppo. Jacob and Mollie raised three daughters and three sons. Their children went to public school and attended Hebrew after school. The neighborhood was a mix of Italian and Jewish. In 1945 Isaac, the third child, joined the United States army and was sent to the Pacific. When Isaac and Claire married they moved to Ocean Parkway then Midwood where their four daughters attended public school. Isaac says: They became more American than Syrian. Nevetheless, the family preserved their Syrian heritage and traditions through religious practices and food. Sally, the youngest, stayed in Brooklyn where she raised her son and daughter. Sabbath observers, the family has perserved their 100-year-old Syrian traditions.