BARUCH DAYAN HA EMET BERNICE BOROK
It is our sad duty to inform you that long time beloved member, Bernice Borok, mother to Jonny Borok, has passed away. Our deepest sympathies to Jonny, his children, Jenna and Glenn and their families, his siblings, Zea and Gil, and their families on their loss.
Funeral Information
Bernice’s funeral will take place on Friday, January 19th at 2:00 p.m.
El Camino Memorial Park
5600 Carroll Canyon Rd
San Diego, CA 92121
Shiva Information
Shiva and Services will be held at Zea Borok’s home:
Mincha/Ma’ariv services:
Sunday, Monday, and Tuesday, Jan 21st – 23rd at 4:55 p.m.
Shiva Visits:
Shiva Visits will take place Sunday, Monday and Tuesday after Mincha/Ma’ariv until 7:00
Eulogy by Zea Borok
Bernice Borok (nee Freedman) Mom, beloved wife of Dov, mother of Zea (Anthony Sank z”l),
Jonny and Gil (Aileen) and Bobba of Jenna (Josh), Glenn, Jack and Estee passed away on
January 17 th , 2024 in Los Angeles, CA. She was buried in San Diego which was the place she always wanted to come back to as her final resting place.
Mom was born in Wynberg, a suburb of Cape Town, South Africa where she was raised within a strong Jewish community. Mom met dad in her late teens in Muizenberg and shared with us that she knew right away she was going to marry him. Mom and dad moved to Highlands Estate to be closer to Herzlia School from 1968 to 1986, when they immigrated to Pittsburgh, PA.
In October 1990, they moved to San Diego where they spent 28 happy years until moving to Los Angeles in October 2018 to be closer to their medical providers at USC. In January 2020 before dad passed away in July of that difficult year, they had been married for 66 years and always found a way to make things work even during tough times, primarily because mom was the rock and foundation of the family.
Mom faced many medical challenges during the last few years of her life including the isolation
of the COVID-19 years, yet she remained mentally astute and fully engaged with her family until the end. She always found joy in a visit from one of the grandkids or family get-togethers
including her granddaughter Jenna’s wedding to Josh, in February 2023, and her 92nd birthday in October 2023, which we celebrated just a few short months before her passing. Mom died on her own terms in a mini-ICU at home because she was adamant that she did not want to go to the hospital and we were fortunate to have some very good times with her over the weeks before her passing, experiencing her sharp wit and sense of humor. Throughout she remained strong and determined and very clear about what she did and did not want.
Mom was an early adopter of the professional working mother. Although she wanted to be in the drama world, her mother thought it was not a suitable career path for a Jewish woman, so she went into teaching and became a dedicated educator, going back to earn her Masters in
Education once her kids were older. She taught in the Cape Town Jewish pre-schools for many years, primarily working with kids who needed some remedial and additional help.
She was also the principal of a colored (mixed race) college, breaking the color barrier in many ways, ahead of her time.
In San Diego, mom got the job of assistant director at the JCC pre-school, where she taught for a number of years and had a positive impact on many children throughout the San Diego Jewish community – including Jenna who was very proud to have her Bobba as a teacher at her own school. Her time at the JCC helped my parents integrate well into the San Diego Jewish community. Thereafter mom taught kids privately; her essence was how to help kids improve their reading & learning skills and she had success where others had failed, teaching until well into her 80s.
Mom could be tough and direct and did not shy away from speaking her mind, but she was a
fierce advocate for those closest to her, always wanting the best for her children and
grandchildren. For her it was always family first – Bobba lived for her kids & grandkids – Jenna,
Glenn, Jack & Estee and now son in law Josh too, as well as her extended family in Tanya, our
cousin, and her kids Adam, Jonathan & Rebecca.
She took great pride in her children and grandchildren, but always emphasized humility and modesty. Her toughness was the result of losing her father at the age of 9, which very much shaped who she was. Her direct approach also meant that you always knew where you stood with her – if she liked you, you were golden, if not, beware!
It was her strength, resilience and perseverance that enabled our parents to immigrate to the US even though dad was sick at the time, for her to get a visa through the Jewish Federation in Pittsburgh that required a combination of Hebrew and special needs experience, to teach special needs children until well into her 80s, to move Zea’s husband Anthony to San Diego where they could help with his care, and for her to make it through the last three years of her life to get to celebrate Jenna’s wedding and her own 92nd birthday.
She intensely disliked being dependent, being on oxygen and needing so much help. So, in some ways we know that her passing was a relief to her.
We were fortunate that mom had an amazing team of caregivers who treated her with kindness and love. Led by Fada, Jackie, Pola and Mylene provided 24- hour care to mom for the last several months of her life. Despite her many medical challenges, she developed a routine that she was content with – including Rummikub, computer time to read the news (Jerusalem Post) or basking in the sun outside her assisted living facility. We used to joke that she wasn’t going to die on a day when she won at Rummikub and she played until the day before she died!
We will remember our mom as someone who was family focused, Jewish to the core; at heart a teacher of kids, especially Jewish kids, a teacher of character and values, and most all a very special mother to us kids and grandkids. As we bid farewell to a woman of such indomitable spirit and loving heart, let us not forget the lessons she taught us through her actions and her life. Let us carry her legacy forward – a legacy of love, resilience, and the courage to face life head-on. We miss you. May you rest in peace.