Rabbi Stanley Savage
SAVAGE: There is less laughter in the world today. Rabbi Stanley Savage was known for his quirky sense of humor, always having a “Dad Joke” at the ready. But on Friday evening, November 17, Rabbi Savage passed away peacefully following a two-year long battle with cancer. Rabbi Stanley was born in Belgium on August 3, 1949. His parents, Sam Savage (z”l) and Jolan “Yetta” Savage (z”l), were both Holocaust survivors, and emigrated to the United States following Stanley’s birth. Stanley grew up in Pittsburgh but went to high school in Baltimore and studied at the Brooklyn College in New York. He obtained his smicha (ordination) from the Yeshiva Gadol (Talmudical Institute of Pittsburgh), which is no longer in existence. As a young man, Stanley taught at several Jewish schools and did various jobs throughout the community, including being a shomer at the Jewish funeral homes that were in Pittsburgh at the time. He was the rabbi at Congregation Ahavath Achim in Carnegie, PA, New Light Congregation in Squirrel Hill and Tree of Life Congregation in Uniontown, but his longest tenure was at Beth Hamedrash HaGadol-Beth Jacob Synagogue in downtown Pittsburgh. Stanley served this synagogue from 1983 – 2021. His assistance was invaluable to the congregation in the transition period during which they were relocated to their current home, and the previous building was demolished for the construction of the new Penguins’ hockey arena. Although still enjoying his place at the synagogue, when the pandemic no longer allowed for daily minyanim, he retired. Rabbi Stanley’s offbeat sense of humor was legendary. His home contained framed pictures of the Marx Brothers, cardboard cutouts of the Three Stooges, and a life-sized family of stuffed giraffes. His passion, other than studying Talmud and Torah, was sports, particularly wrestling. But mostly, he enjoyed interacting with people. His home was open to all who wished to sit and “schmooze” either over a bagel or a glass of peach schnapps. When at a restaurant, he would walk into the kitchen and thank the food preparers. On the street he would stop to talk with everyone: he would admire a baby in a stroller, help an elderly person to maneuver, or give money and food to a homeless person. Stanley loved his children, Adina (Brad) Cohen and Daniel (Angelina) Savage; also his three grandchildren, Frank, Nora and Sophia Cohen. Devoted to his beloved family, Stanley is survived by his sister Faye (Leslie) Unger and his brother Eugene (Michelle) Savage, his many nieces and nephews, great-nieces and great-nephews, and his Aunt Marlene Lebovitz and his cousins. Stanley was very grateful for his many friends, especially those on the team that looked after him during his illness. Rabbi Stanley Savage was one of a kind, and will be truly missed by all who knew and loved him. Services were held at Ralph Schugar Chapel, Inc. Interment Beth Hamedrash Hagodol/Beth Jacob Cemetery. Contributions in Stanley’s memory and honor may be made to Autism Society of America, 6110 Executive Boulevard, Suite 305, Rockville, MD 20852. schugar.com PJC
comments