Samuel Greene Obituary

Samuel H. Greene CHARLESTON - Samuel H. Greene, 98, of Charleston, SC, widower of Regina Kawer Greene died January 4, 2013. His funeral services will be held at the graveside Sunday, January 6, 2013 in Beth Elohim Cemetery, Huguenin Avenue, at 11:00 a.m. Samuel was a retired merchant and benefactor and died after a period of declining health. Born March 20, 1914 in Slawatycze, Poland, the son of Chemia Grynblat and Rochel-Leah Kaufman, he received little formal education, was apprenticed to a furrier, and as a young teenager was imprisoned for his political activities against the fascist state. Granted amnesty in Warsaw, he met Regina Kawer and they were married in 1939. Together they survived the holocaust that killed the majority of their families, enduring forced labor in Siberia and the Ural mountains before escaping to Samarqand, Uzbekistan. Immigrating to the United States in 1948, they settled in Charleston, where Sam began his life as a merchant, peddling goods in a pack off his back even before he knew English. He eventually became a successful merchant, running several furniture stores, including Park Furniture Company, the furniture department at GEX, Palmetto Furniture and Colony Furniture Mart, later Ethan Allen Carriage House. Grateful to the country where he found refuge, he along with his wife Regina established the Greene family fund at the Coastal Community Foundation. After her death in 1990, Sam endowed the Yashick/Arnold Jewish Studies Program at the College of Charleston and the College's Addlestone Library Jewish Heritage Collection in his and her name. He served on many holocaust related committees, and was instrumental in the development of the Holocaust Memorial at Marion Square in the city of Charleston. An avid golfer and traveler, Sam spent many of his last years with his beloved Thelma Becker and a series of devoted dogs, all named Sasha. He is survived by Thelma Becker, a half sister, Hella Rosen of Chicago, Ill, and her children and grandchildren; a cousin Philip Garen of Minneapolis, MN; son Leonard (Lenny) A. Greene, Leonard's daughters Chloe and Sophie, and their mother Nan Rickson; his daughter Karen Greene and her husband Jim Andrews of Port St. Joe, Florida; his son Harlan Greene and his partner Jonathan Ray; and his son Thomas (Tommy), and his wife Deb Jensen, of Emerald Hills, CA.. He is also survived by a loving cadre of women who tended him with special care: Christine Renee Goins, Nola Jackson, Felicia Mouzone, Janeusha Newkirk, Sandra Smith and Alice Washington. Memorials can be made to the Jewish Heritage Collection, Addlestone Library, College of Charleston, 66 George Street, Charleston, SC 29424. Arrangements by J. HENRY STUHR, INC., DOWNTOWN CHAPEL. A memorial message may be written to the family by visiting our website at www.jhenrystuhr.com. Visit our guestbook at www.legacy.com/obituaries/ charleston