Janice Karesh Obituary

KARESH, Janice Entered into eternal rest on the morning of January 5, 2009, Janice Lehrer Karesh, widow of Irwin Karesh, D.D.S. Residence, Charleston, SC. The relatives and friends are invited to attend her funeral services Tuesday, January 6, 2009 at one o'clock, at the graveside in Brith Sholom Beth Israel Cemetery, "Maryville." Mrs. Karesh was born May 22, 1924, in New York, NY, the daughter of Maxwell Lehrer and Lillian Cohen Lehrer. She received her Masters Degree in psychology and counseling from New York University. She was a member of Brith Sholom Beth Israel Synagogue and a retired School Administrator. Mrs. Karesh was a life long educator and served as supervisor of special education in the Beaufort County School system for over twenty years. She was the pivotal person in seeing that children with special needs, got the special attention they needed. She was a pioneer of this work in South Carolina. She was also a board member of the Dee Norton Lowcountry Children's Center. She was active in civil rights and women's issues. She was a former president of the local chapter of the League of Women Voters and the National Council of Jewish Women. She is survived by four children: Sara K. Benfield and her husband David of Boone, NC, Hyman Karesh and his wife Paula of Columbia, SC, Ann K. Baker and her husband Stanley of Charleston, SC and Charles J. Karesh of Charleston, SC; one sister: Gloria L. Peeples of Charleston, SC; four grandchildren: Lee Benfield, Katie B. Shoptaw, Abby Suss and Mary Lehrer Karesh; and many nieces & nephews. Memorials may be made to Brith Sholom Beth Israel Synagogue, 182 Rutledge Avenue, Charleston, SC 29403, or Lowcountry Children's Center, 1061 King Street, Charleston, SC 29403, or Charleston Animal Society, 2455 Remount Road, North Charleston, SC 29406. Arrangements by J .HENRY STUHR, INC., DOWNTOWN CHAPEL. Visit our guestbook at www.charleston.net/deaths.