Ilanit Atias
If I may, I just wanted to share something personal about Eric Gordon also known as Yitzchak Moshe ben Dov Berel (Hebrew name) ob”m.
Jason, Eric son (see photo #4) who is a dear friend of mine wrote about his father: “he was a great Yid that loved his fellow Yidden.” That really stayed with me, because anyone who knew Eric knows how true that was.
I was also moved to realize that his passing was on the 15th of Sivan, a day traditionally connected with Yehudah/Judah, the son of Jacob/Yaakov and Leah, the ancestor of King David and the source of the word Yehudi/Yidden, Jew. Yehudah represents leadership, responsibility, humility, repentance, and self-sacrifice. In so many ways, that feels deeply connected to the kind of Jewish legacy Eric lived and passed on to his family.
Eric had that rare kind of warmth that made you feel welcome right away. His laugh was contagious. He always had a joke, a smile, a Jewish thought, a business thought, or some combination of all three. He loved his family deeply, and you could feel how proud he was of them.
On a personal note, I first came to The WAS; known as the Woodward Avenue Shul, in September 2009, at Einav and Gershen Ashkenazi’s engagement party. I had a two-year-old baby boy at the time, Charlie, and my entire family was (still is) far away in Israel. Over the years, this shul became more than a place to daven(pray). It became my mishpacha, my sanctuary, my everything. Families like the Gordons are a big reason why. They make people feel like they belong.
Jason has carried that same legacy forward. He has always shown love and care toward me, and especially toward my son Charlie. Whenever he had the chance, he reminded Charlie how important it is to honor his parents, honor his mother, be proud to be Jewish, and do the right thing as a Jewish son. You could see that this was not just something Jason said. It came from the way he honored, loved, and respected his own parents.
That is the kind of Jewishness the Gordon family represents to me. Not just words. Not just tradition. But warmth, loyalty, humor, family, kindness, and showing up for the people you love.
May Eric Gordon’s neshama, Yitzchak Moshe ben Dov Berel(Hebrew name), have the highest aliyah, and may Jason, Sarah, and the entire Gordon family be comforted among the mourners of Zion and Jerusalem.
May his memory be a blessing, and may the beautiful Yehudi/Jewish legacy he lived continue through all who loved him.
Amen amen !!
Love,
ILanit and her not-so-baby boy Charlie Shalom (almost 19!).