Victor Malka 1914-2009

Just thought I'd post my eulogy from my grandpa's funeral a few weeks ago. I had so many thoughts I wanted to share about this but life has been absolutely crazy and I haven't found any time to write...

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Although it is incredibly sad to be here, to say goodbye to someone we dearly loved, there is no denying that our Poppy lived a long, full and healthy life. Right up to that last day, he was walking around outside in his garden on his own two feet, taking care of business as he had his entire life.

Born January 29, 1914, in Alexandria, Egypt, Victor Malka was the only son in a family with 7 kids. I guess with 6 sisters, he held the responsibility of taking care of people from an early age. He was a hard worker, but he also knew how to enjoy life too. He played soccer, sang in the choir, worked at the race track, and he always loved a pretty girl and a day at the beach.

He married our grandmother, Janet in 1944 and our dad was born a few years later. Although they lived a happy and privileged life for many years in Alexandria, they were not Egyptian. They were actually French nationals, and in the mid-50s, the Egyptian ruler Nasser decided Egypt would be better off without the Europeans and ordered them all to leave immediately, leaving their homes, their hired help, and virtually all their possessions behind. My grandparents had to pack all their belongings into just two suitcases. Poppy hollowed out a large book and stuffed it with cash and gave it to my dad, who was then 9 years old, to hold. They were stuffed onto a boat bound for Southern France. Poppy quickly established himself in Paris and helped his immediate and extended families in many ways we don’t even know. He was truly the Patriarch of his family and to this day he is revered by his nieces and nephews across the globe.

Three of his sisters stayed in France and raised their families there and the other three, along with Poppy, came to the US, to New York a year later. We met many of our French cousins as children when we used to spend summers with Nana and Poppy in New York.

I have so many great memories of summers with Poppy in New York. He bought a house on a cul de sac in the suburbs, on Long Island, when most people lived in the city, and he was so proud of that house and neighborhood. Bellmore, NY was a quaint and quiet town, half an hour from bustling Manhattan, and minutes from the beach. I remember getting fresh milk in glass bottles, playing for hours in Poppy’s perfectly ordered garage or neatly mowed backyard, walking to the nearby school playground or the small downtown strip. Poppy was also very proud of Jaclyn and me, and loved bringing us around to visit friends and family. Everyone knew and loved him.

When I was in college, I decided to spend a semester in France to discover my French heritage, and Poppy, already 80 years old, insisted on accompanying me all the way to Paris to personally introduce me to his extended family. I knew by the way they treated me that Poppy was very special to them.

Last week, as family members learned that Poppy was in the hospital, the emails began pouring in. One cousin called Poppy “The savior of the Malka’s, the one who would do anything for his family. He was a tree of life, with beautiful branches in the USA, and roots that stretch all the way back here to France, actually even further than that.” Another cousin said, “We are keeping Victor forever in our hearts as the inspiring, loving and generous person he was all his life. May God bless him.” To that I say, Amen.

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Here's the song I sang in Hebrew (transliterations) and the English translation:

Shalom Rav – Grant Peace
Shalom rav al Yisrael am'cha tasim l'olam (2X)
Ki atah hu Melech Adon l'chol ha-shalom (2X)
V'tov b'einecha l'vareich et am'cha Yisrael b'chol et uv'chol sha'ah bish-lomecha
Baruch atah Adonai, oseh ha shalom

Grant abundant peace over Your people, Israel forever. For You, God, are the sovereign source of all peace. So may it be good in Your eyes to bless Your people in every hour and in every season with Your peace. Blessed are You, Lord our God, who blesses His people with peace.