Judith (Beker Cohen) Meisel, age 91, passed away peacefully at home on November 3, 2020 in St. Louis Park, MN. She was born in Lithuania to Mina and Osser Beker, and survived the Holocaust in the Kovno ghetto and eventually the Stutthoff Concentration Camp where her mother was murdered in the gas chamber. She and her sister, Rachel, escaped during a death march in 1945 as the Russians were advancing towards the Camp. She was 16 years old when she was liberated in Denmark. More than 75 years later, Judy provided key witness testimony in recent German indictments and trials of SS guards from Stutthoff. Her amazing story of survival can be found at www.judymeisel.com. Her life story as a Holocaust survivor, educator, speaker and activist was chronicled in a documentary film, Tak for Alt. She was steadfast and outspoken in her pursuit of justice, sharing her story as a lesson to fight hatred, bigotry and indifference. Her favorite expression was, “I hate hate.” She previously lived in Philadelphia and Santa Barbara, where she was a renowned preschool director and teacher. Judy is predeceased, in addition to her parents, by her loving husband, Fred Meisel; her sister, Rachel Levitin and Rachel’s husband, Josfa; her brother, Abe Beker; and son-in-law, Samuel Tucker.
She is survived by her three children, Mina (Jeffrey Berenson) Cohen of Mendocino, CA, Michael (Soni) Cohen of St. Louis Park, MN and Debby Tucker of Potomac, MD. She is also survived by her step-daughters, Alexandra (Jonathan) Bricklin and Rene Meisel; and her sister-in-law, Simmie Beker of Toronto. Her deepest pride were her grandchildren who called her Savta: Elana (Yakov) Pesah of Jerusalem, Yael (Ben) White of Chicago, IL, Aaron (Katherine Clark) Cohen of Astoria, Queens, NY, Ben (Erin) Cohen of Brooklyn, NY, Seth Tucker of Silver Spring, MD and Jennifer (Matthew) Shopsin of San Carlos, CA. She also is survived by her step-granddaughter, Rebecca Bricklin. Judy’s biggest joy were her great-grandchildren, Mira and Rafa Clark Cohen, Ada and Eleanor White, Aaron, Chana, Shmuel, Yisroel and Rivka Pesah; and Rachel Shopsin. She will be missed by nieces, nephews and friends who became “family” especially after losing so many of her own relatives in the Holocaust. Judy had a large number of “closest friends” and was only 2 or 3 degrees of separation from thousands of people. There was always a seat available for guests at her table for a Shabbat meal or holiday dinner. Her mock chopped liver, schnecken and meringue cookies were legendary. Judy will be missed by many as she touched so many lives with her empathic ability to connect with anyone that she left a large special imprint on the world. Burial will be a private graveside service due to Covid-19.
A larger memorial tribute will be held in the future post-pandemic. In lieu of flowers please make a donation in her memory to The Judy Project at www.judymeisel.com. This will help ensure that her story continues to be shared with future generations through new film and multimedia works. Judy was a lifelong supporter of the Anti-Defamation League so contributions are also welcomed in her memory to the ADL of Santa Barbara or the JCRC of Minnesota and the Dakotas.
Hodroff-Epstein 612-871-1234
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