OBITUARIES THOMAS BACHMAN NORFOLK—On September 29, 2021, Thomas Charles Bachman, 69, passed away in Norfolk. He was born in Baltimore, Md., to John and Ann Bachman, of blessed memory. He is survived by his wife of 43 years, Gail; sons John, David (Laura), and Brian (Sara). He was predeceased by his sister, Dianne, and brother, Ricky. Tom proudly served as a chief in the United States Navy for 20 years. Following his retirement from the Navy in 1990, he spent over 20 years as an independent contractor. Tom was involved in Fleet Park Little League baseball where his kids played for over a decade. He also was an active member of the Ohef Sholom Temple family for several decades, serving in many leadership roles. Above all, Tom (“Pops” to his sons) was most proud of his beloved family. Fair winds and following seas, Chief! A private funeral was held with Rabbi Roz Mandelberg and Cantor Jen Rueben officiating. The service was livestreamed at facebook.com/hdoliverfuneralapts, and was later available on Ohef Sholom Temple’s Facebook page. H.D. Oliver Funeral Apts. Donations may be made to Ohef Sholom Temple. CONNIE BANKS BERNSTEIN NORFOLK—Connie Banks Bernstein of Norfolk, Va. passed away on Sept. 13, 2021, at age 95. She is predeceased (1988) by her beloved husband Elliot Bernstein. She is survived by her three children: sons Albert and Morton Bernstein; daughter Joyce Howell; and by her seven grandchildren and seven great grandchildren. While raising her family she was active at Congregation Beth El and the Norfolk Garden Club. Her family will remember the care and warmth she put into preparing family meals (and endless chocolate chip cookies) for the holidays, her tireless work in the garden of her home on Brandon Avenue where she lived for 70 years, her artistry in knitting, her love of summers at Mallory Pool and the JCC
with the grandkids, and her sense of humor and sharp wit. She treasured above all her family, and she will be missed by them and by her friends in West Ghent and Beth Sholom Village. The family plans to remember her next year around what she loved most—a family Passover meal.
NORMAN BLUMENSON KEIZER, ORE.—Norman Blumenson, born September 12, 1925, died on September 15, 2021, a few days after his 96th birthday, in Keizer, Oregon. Norman was born and raised in Brooklyn, New York, the son of the late Isadore and Fannie Blumenson. He was predeceased by his wife of 59 years, Alice, and his sisters Barbara Krieger and Elinore Kavit. Norman served in the Army Air Corp during World War II, and then attended and graduated from Long Island University. He went to work at Alexander’s department stores in New York and became the woman’s coat buyer, which took him throughout Europe to many fashion shows. Following his years at Alexander’s and then S. Klein department stores, he and his wife opened a shoe store off of Fifth Avenue in Manhattan. He lived for many years in Livingston, N.J., and later Suffolk, Virginia and Aventura, Florida. He was a member of Temple Beth Shalom in Livingston and Congregation Beth El in Norfolk, and was a member of Men’s Club and B’nai B’rith. He enjoyed golfing and watching football and baseball. He was fond of remembering attending Don Larsen’s “perfect” World Series game in 1956. Norman is survived by his daughters and sons-in-law, Randi Blumenson and Daniel Mussatti of Salem, Oregon; Gail Blumenson Reisman and Adam Reisman of Washington, DC; as well as his grandsons, Danny (Rosie), Stevan (Janie) and Scott (Liz) Mussatti, and Eli Reisman. He is also survived by his great-grandchildren Tristan (Alex), Justin, MacKenzie, Taylor, Addison, Austyn and Harper Mussatti, Jenna Schoeplfin and Aiden and Isaac Bien; as well as his nieces and nephews.
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A private graveside funeral was held in Portsmouth, Virginia. Smith and Williams. The family welcomes donations in Norman’s name to Mazon (www. mazon.org) or Western Tidewater Free Clinic (www.wtfreeclinic.org).
LORETTA ANN COHEN NORFOLK—Loretta Ann Cohen, nee Comess, passed on the 18th of September, 2021. Loretta was born in 1937 and raised in Norfolk, Virginia. A true Norfolkian; she attended Blair Middle School and Maury High School. She was passionate about art, philanthropy, and her five grandchildren. Loretta is predeceased by her husband of over 50 years, Jack Cohen; her brother Barry Comess, Richmond; and her son, David I. Millison. She is survived by her brother, Allan Comess, Virginia Beach; daughter, Rachelle Millison, Annapolis; and her five grandchildren: Sydnee Millison, Ezra Beasley, Jules Millison, Jordan Beasley, and Sheldon Millison. A private graveside service was held at Forest Lawn Cemetery. MILDRED LILLIAN DREYFUS CHESAPEAKE—Mildred Lillian Dreyfus, 94, passed away on September 26, 2021, surrounded by her loving family. She was born in Union City, New Jersey to Benjamin and Rebecca Scherb on December 7, 1926. One of seven siblings, she was a first-generation American in a European immigrant family. When she was 10 years old, Mildred moved with her family to Montgomery, Ala. for two years as her father took part in building the City of Saint Jude, an institution providing social services to the African American community and an important center of the Civil Rights movement. After completing her schooling in Union City, Mildred worked for several years in Manhattan’s Garment District. She met Alfred Dreyfus, a German-born Holocaust refugee recently arrived in New York, at a Jewish singles dance at New York’s City Center, and the couple was married in 1951. The couple, soon
blessed with children Claudia and Mark, moved frequently as a result of Alfred’s work: from Queens, N.Y. to Schenectady, N.Y. to Stratford, Conn. and finally to Norfolk, Va. in 1966. In the Tidewater area, Mildred was a steadfast partner to her beloved Alfred and instrumental in helping him to establish and grow ECPI University. Her common sense, encyclopedic recall for names and figures, and caring nature were invaluable as she and Alfred built an institution centered on computer science education and other professional training programs. “Mrs D” was well-respected and admired by everyone and a fixture at holiday parties and graduations. Mildred was devoted to family and especially to her grandchildren and great-grandchildren, to whom she was known affectionately as Oma. Mildred was renowned as a gourmet cook and delighted in preparing special dishes for the Jewish holidays. She was a repository of family history, using her phenomenal memory to transmit many stories to the younger generations. She kept her wits and sense of humor to her last day. As her Hebrew name, Malka, evokes, she had a regal presence and always carried herself with dignity and poise. She made friends easily and greeted everyone with a warm smile and a kind word. She was civically minded and dedicated to community welfare, performing many charitable acts without fanfare or recognition. She always put the needs of others before her own. Mildred is survived by her beloved husband Alfred Dreyfus; daughter Claudia Dreyfus (Henry Levi, of blessed memory); son Mark Dreyfus (Rebecca); grandchildren Brett and Marisa Levi (Andrew Staines), Sam, Max, and Sophia Dreyfus; and great-grandchildren Joshua, Evan, and Natalie Staines. Following a private family service, she will be interred at Cedar Park Beth-El Cemetery in Paramus, New Jersey. The family asks that donations be made to the Holocaust Commission of United Jewish Federation of Tidewater or the Beacon Education Foundation LIFT Scholarship, which improves access for
