We were fortunate enough to have spent a wonderful weekend with Irena in April 2019 in Vilnius. We met her when her grandson Misha married our eldest daughter, Katie in 2018 and told her we were keen to visit Vilnius. She was so eager to show us the city. What was fascinating about Irena was her lust for life. In spite of or perhaps because of her back story, she was interested in everything; arts, literature, science, history,food….
She was a fascinating companion and loved everything Lithuanian. This to some extent surprised us given the Holocaust and of course her family history. But she had a remarkable ability to compartmentalise. She rarely looked back and always looked forward. My lasting memory of her is of her literally running down the steep stairs of her apartment building despite having failing eyesight and ignoring my futile attempts to hold onto her. She had a place to visit and no one was going to slow her down. She will be sorely missed by both her family and of course the wider world which she illuminated.
המקום ינחם אתכם בתוך שאר אבלי ציון וירושלים
“May God comfort you among the other mourners of Zion and Jerusalem.”
