Helene "Sis" Shilkrot Obituary (1928 - 2015)

Helene “Sis” Shilkrot, age 86 of St. Louis Park, formerly of Rice Lake, WI, died Jan. 14, 2015. Preceded in death by parents, Sidney & Ray (Banditson) Grossman; brother, Donald Grossman (Joan) Grossman. Sis is survived by her loving husband of 65 years, Herman A. Shilkrot, son Rod (Cheryl Levy- Shilkrot), and Alan Shilkrot; daughter Susan (James) Duchon; grandchildren, Jayme (Jonathan) Lopuch, Josef (Katie) Shilkrot, Jesse and Justin Duchon; nephews and niece. Sis was born and raised in Rochester, NY studied piano at the Eastman School of Music in Rochester and later attended prep school in the Boston area. She then married on April 3, 1949 in Rochester, and moved to Rice Lake, Wis., the hometown of her husband. There, they raised three children and operated Shilkrot’s Fashions, a furs and bridals store—which was in the Shilkrot family for more than 50 years. She was a pillar of the small but thriving Jewish community of Rice Lake, active in the local B’nai Brith, hosted community Passover Seders, and was a wonderful cook and avid Bridge player. She was committed to making a Jewish home for her children, exemplified in the fact she drove her eldest son 130 miles round-trip to Eau Claire every Sunday for more than two years so that he could study for his Bar Mitzvah. She was always so proud of her store display window design awards, and was an active member of the Rice Lake Fort-Nightly women’s service club. Through that organization, she helped plan and stage a fund-raising tea for Senator John F. Kennedy during the 1959 Wisconsin Presidential Primary campaign. She spent the last several years of her life as a resident of the Sholom West Nursing Home in St. Louis Park. Special thank you's to Eric, Banda, Emanuel, Paula, Hannah, Doris, Katie, Debra, Arkor, Gigi and Precious x3, and entire 2-North staff at Sholom Home West for their compassionate and loving care. Memorial service 2:00 p.m. TUESDAY, January 20th at TEMPLE ISRAEL, 2324 Emerson Ave. So., Minneapolis. In lieu of flowers, memorials are preferred to the donor's favorite charity. SHIVA, 7 p.m. Tuesday at Sholom Home West, 3620 Phillips Parkway, St. Louis Park.