If ever there were a strong and indomitable woman, it was Hazel Gensberg. If ever there were a case of death from a broken heart, it was Hazel Gensberg. This 104-year-old woman, known and loved by thousands, the friendly and professional voice at the switchboard of BMH-BJ until a couple of years ago, the person for whom the words “steady” and “unruffled” were devised, left us this week — just a few weeks after the passing of her beloved son Ardie Wandel.
We are reminded of a remark by the late President Truman when asked whether he thought his obscure father had been a success. Truman deadpanned, “I’d say someone who raised a son to be president of the US was a success.” Ardie Wandel, teacher of thousands, was Hazel Gensberg’s evidence of success, although, unlike Mr. Truman, Gensberg was very much a person of stature in her own right.
It left one with anguish to witness the searing anguish of this 104-year-old, entirely lucid, over burying her 77-year old son. Living on her own at 104, invariably welcoming and modest, she leaves so many so saddened with her passing. She also leaves us knowing that another word was devised for her: amazing.
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