Obituary for Geraldine “Gerry” June Salvay Geraldine June (“Gerry”) Salvay, 96, of Overland Park, KS, passed away Saturday, 22 December 2018 at Village Shalom, Overland Park, KS where she had resided since August 2013. Funeral services will be held at Louis Memorial Chapel, 6830 Troost, Kansas City MO at 10:30 a.m., Monday, 24 December 2018 followed by burial at Rose Hill Cemetery, 69th and Troost, Kansas City, MO. The family suggests contributions to the charity of one’s choice.
Gerry was born 02 June 1922 at Bethany Medical Center in Kansas City KS to Solomon “Sol” Krigel (born in Dzyatlava, Hrodna Region, Belarus in 1892 and arrived in Kansas City in 1909) and Ruth Milgram (born in New York City in 1903 and came to Kansas City from the New York City area in 1905 with her parents, Bertha and Herman Milgram, immigrants from Chisinau [Kishinev], Romania, and her 10 older siblings). Gerry loved to play piano and studied with her cousin, Dorothy (Krigel) Vile, and with Opal Eichler at what is now the UMKC Conservatory: She and her mother both had extraordinary musical ears and the ability to play or sing almost anything after only one listening. Gerry demonstrated independence and confidence early in life: Starting at age 8, she took the streetcar by herself most Saturdays from her home at 24th and State Avenue, Kansas City KS, to her father’s jewelry store at 548 Minnesota Avenue to help him in his business.
During high school, she had her first job away from the family jewelry store at The Lerner Shops, 31st and Troost. While a student at Kansas City University – now UMKC – she made time to teach Sunday school at Congregation Beth Shalom at the request of her beloved Rabbi Gershon Hadas. Gerry formed lasting friendships.
She and her Beth Shalom girlfriends, Mary Sonken, Dorothy Ingram, and Marian Hurst, formed a pre-confirmation “sorority” group “Phi-Rho-Eta” (the “PREs”); over the many years, these “girls” stayed in touch with one another. In high school, Gerry enjoyed a close friendship with Esther (Rosen) Singman, DeeDee (Goldberg) Cohen, and Eunice (Gershon) Rubin. In college, she met her dear friend, Geraldine “Gerry” (Peltzman) Silvers; the two Gerrys talked almost daily, and maintained a caring relationship – “sisters,” as they would say – throughout their adult lives until Gerry Silvers died in 2009.
Gerry’s father encouraged her to get as much education as she could. With thinking that was well ahead of its time, Sol told her that women could accomplish anything they wished: This idea that education was important was regularly conveyed by Gerry to her sons and to her grandchildren. Gerry was gifted in academics, especially mathematics, a subject studied by very few women of her era.
She finished high school on her 16th birthday (1938), and earned her Bachelor of Science degree in Mathematics from Kansas City University on her 20th birthday (1942). She also earned certification to teach mathematics in all primary and secondary grades. After university, Gerry worked as head of a US Government financial-audit group in Kansas City; in the midst of that employ, Gerry’s father died (Nov 1944) following a long battle with diabetes.
She immediately took on the additional responsibility of daily opening and closing Krigel’s jewelry store, and of keeping its books and records. Gerry was lovingly assisted by long-time loyal Krigel-family friend, employee and neighbor, Ella Wicker. Gerry said the experience of keeping her family’s business going taught her perseverance.
During WWII, Seymour Nathan Salvay was a civilian aerobatics instructor for the Army Air Corps (now US Air Force) in Coffeyville, KS. In September 1942, Nathan was invited to dinner at the home of Gerry’s aunt and uncle, Maime and Elias Krigel, whose daughter, Rose (Krigel) Krashin, suggested that Nathan call her cousin, Geraldine, when he was next in Kansas City. Nathan did just that…and after Nathan returned from his duties as Lieutenant and command pilot in the China-Burma-India theatre of WWII, Gerry and he were married on 20 January 1946.
As soon as Nate was discharged from military service in mid-1946, Gerry and he started and ran “Salvay Flying Service” at Richards-Gebaur Airport in Grandview MO; they used their two small airplanes for flight instruction and charter. In early 1948, after the birth of their first son, Steven, Gerry decided that she would stay home with the family…and that Nathan should find some more “down-to-earth” way to make a living than flying; he joined Milgram Food Stores. Gerry and Nathan raised their three sons, Steven, Craig and Brian, in the Leave-It-To-Beaver days of the 1950s and 60s, teaching each son the importance of wonder, kindness, generosity, and unconditional love.
While Gerry was active in civic and religious organizations – Congregation Beth Shalom, Hadassah, Menorah Medical Center, the Jewish Home for the Aged (now Village Shalom), and PTAs at every school her sons attended – she chose to focus her life on her loving family and her cherished friends. She and Nathan were members of Congregation Beth Shalom’s first chavurah (“friendship group”), formed in 1956, a group that continued to meet until the early 2000s: Doris and Bill Edelman, Florence and Myrl Cohen, Doris and Paul Flam, Dorthea and Nate Jagoda, Mina and Sol Yarowsky, Tzivia and Joe Gaba, Jean and Norm Parmet, Teddy and Joe Oshiver. These and other longtime friendships were the hallmarks of Gerry’s life well lived.
Gerry recently summed up her life in these words: “I have had a wonderful and full life. I was encouraged early in my life to seek education in order to have more choices, and I encouraged my children and grandchildren to go as far as they could in academics. When I had the chance, I shared with my family and friends the wisdom I had gained from my own experiences in life.
I have lived long enough to clearly understand that death is a part of life; we must accept those things that we cannot change, and continue living”. Gerry was preceded in death by her (i) parents, Sol Krigel (1892-1944) and Ruth Milgram Krigel Bock Eisberg (1903-1996), (ii) step-fathers, Arthur Bock (1891-1956) and Sam Eisberg (1903-1990), (iii) loving husband, Seymour Nathan Salvay (1916-2009), and (iv) beloved sons, Steven Howard Salvay (1948-2004) and Brian Allan “Boruch” Salvay (1953-2015), (v) brother and sister-in-law, Edwin and Barbara “Babs” (Oppenheimer) Krigel; brother and sister-in-law, Richard “Dick” and Peggy (Paddor) Krigel; sister and brother-in-law, Phyllis and Lyle Rips; brother-in-law and sister-in-law Melvin Eugene “Gene” and Betty (Goodman) Salvay; step-brother, Joel Bock and his wife, Sandy (Silverman) Bock; step-sister Ann (Bock) Levine and her husband, Jess Levine, who was Gerry’s first cousin. She is survived by her (i) son and daughter-in-law, Craig and Linda Salvay, of Prairie Village KS and their children: Rachel Anne Salvay of Denver CO, and Sarah Abigail (Salvay) Gallardo (husband, Bob, and their children: Nicholas Giovanni, Jacob Solomon, Christian Anthony and Vivian Margaret) of Lafayette CO, (ii) daughter-in-law, Helen Schwartz Salvay (widow of son, Steven) of Castle Rock CO and her children: David Marshall Salvay (wife, Erica) of Irvine CA, and Miriam Jean (Salvay) Shwartz (husband, Gilad, their children: Sivan Amali and Kol Dov) of Larkspur CO, (iii) daughter-in-law, Loretta “Miriam” (Goodman) Salvay (widow of son, Brian) of Woodridge NY, and her eight children: Naftoli Pesach Salvay (wife Sarah; children Shirel Leah, Meira Batya, Moshe Chaim, Tahila Bracha and Aviel Yosef Aharon) of New Hempstead NY; Yosef Eliyahu “Joe” Salvay of Woodridge NY; Binyomin Eliezer Salvay of Woodridge NY; Naomi Shira Fruma Salvay (daughter, Talia Shira) of Woodridge NY; Shmuel Yissochor Dov “Sam” Salvay (wife Lauren) of Wallkill NY; Levi Zechariah Salvay (wife Chana Rochel; children Yosef Asher, Yehuda Aryeh, Shira Nechama and Eliyahu Yitzchok) of Waterbury CT; Yisroel Meir Salvay of Woodridge NY; Esther Manya Salvay of Woodridge NY; (iv) by step-sisters, Judy (Eisberg) Hellman (husband, Lloyd) and Marcia (Eisberg) Rittmaster (husband, Larry); (v) and by her AFS exchange-student son from Chile, Carlos Perez (wife Susanna) of Bayshore NY and their family.
She is also survived by her loving nieces, nephews, cousins and friends. Gerry’s family is grateful to her daily companions, Meron “Merry” Heramo and Yirgalem Yemer — Gerry’s “angels” — for their loving attention to Gerry in the last year of her life, and to the nurses and assisted-living staff at Village Shalom for their patient and attentive care. Upcoming Events Funeral DEC 24.
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