Ralph Stern
Nazi Germany refugee Ralph Stern died on December 31, 2024, at the age of 87. A service was held on January 6, 2025 at Feldman Mortuary, with interment at Emanuel Cemetery, officiated by Mr. Stern’s son, Rabbi Ron Stern. Feldman Mortuary handled the arrangements.
Born in Essen, Germany in 1937, Mr. Stern immigrated one year later with his parents to the US, and settled in Charlotte, NC. Mr. Stern received an MBA from the Wharton School and took over the family’s knitwear business that his father started before they left Germany.
In 1959, Fran and Ralph Stern were married. They remained a couple for 67 years until Mr. Stern’s passing.
Mr. Stern committed a great portion of his life to the United Jewish Appeal (now Jewish Federations of North America) where he served on and chaired the Men’s National Young Leadership Cabinet. The Sterns were the first to serve as a special delegation to welcome refuseniks as they emigrated from the Soviet Union to Israel.
Mr. Stern obtained a master’s in Jewish education from the Jewish Theological Seminary in New York City.
In 1992, the Sterns moved to Denver, where Mr. Stern became executive vice-president of the Allied Jewish Federation. He worked with his daughter Sharon and son-in-law Gadi at IsArt, an Israeli jewelry and Judaica business. Mr. Stern also taught at the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute at DU.
Survivors are Mr. Stern’s wife Frances; children Rabbi Ron (Becky Sobelman-Stern) Stern, Sharon (Gadi) Eisner and Dan (Joy Novick) Stern; grandchildren Noah (Melody Khorsandi) Stern, Eliana (Matthew Landau), Oriel Eisner, Dana (Terrell Pearson) Eisner, Elan Eisner and Ari Stern; great grandchildren Milo Khorsandi Stern and Oliver Stern; and brother Robert (Dinah Burstein-Stern) Stern.
Contributions may be made to The Center for Jewish Non-Violence, The New Israel Fund or JFS.
Maxine Reiff
Longtime Denver resident Maxine Reiff passed away on December 15, 2024, at the age of 86. A service was held at Temple Emanuel on December 17, officiated by Rabbi Steven Foster and Steve Brodsky. Feldman Mortuary made the arrangements.
Born in Houston, Texas, on March 1, 1938, Mrs. Reiff (née Friedberg) enjoyed an active lifestyle growing up, and attended the University of Texas in Austin. In 1957, she met Ben Reiff, who grew up on Denver’s West Side. They got married two months and 11 days after they met and Mrs. Reiff moved to Denver. Theirs’ was a love story that lasted just shy of 47 years until Mr. Reiff’s passing in 2004.
“Maxine was a devoted wife, mother, grandmother and friend,” her family said. “She was fun-loving, tenacious and caring, and generous to a fault. She was fiercely protective of those she loved. Her philosophy was simple: family first, last and always.
“She also had a unique approach to life that enabled her to connect to many and various people, forming real and lasting relationships. Maxine could be irreverent and had a wonderful sense of humor. She was always true to herself and she lived life by The Golden Rule.”
Mrs. Reiff is survived by children Gary (Michelle) Reiff, Jerry Reiff and Peggy (Alan) Mayer; grandchildren Melanie Reiff, David (Zoe Eggleston) Reiff, Brian Reiff, Sydney Mayer and Braden Mayer; and sister Carol Fradkin.
Contributions may be made to the Scleroderma Research Foundation, Brighton Hospice or Temple Emanuel.
Sylvia Goodman
Longtime Denver resident Sylvia Goodman passed away on December 22, 2024, at the age of 83. A service was held on December 24 at Temple Emanuel, officiated by Rabbi Joseph Black and Rabbi Steven Foster. Feldman Mortuary made the arrangements.
Mrs. Goodman (née Ruschin) was born in London, England and moved with her family to the US. She attended the National College of Education in Evanston, Ill.
In 1962, Sylvia and Harold Goodman were married in Chicago, Ill. The couple moved to Denver in 1965; Mr. Goodman died in July, 2011.
Mr. and Mrs. Goodman were longtime members of Temple Emanuel. Mrs. Goodman’s parents were Holocaust survivors; her father escaped the Sachsenhausen concentration camp.
Mrs. Goodman taught at Fairview Elementary. She was active in Hadassah, the Shir Ami singers and spearheaded the construction of the neighborhood wall around the Eastridge community. She was also a lifelong artist and taught crafts at the JCC.
“Sylvia was a talented and loving person, artist, teacher, mother, realtor, world traveler and grandmother,” her family said. “She loved to play games and kept up with several social groups and book clubs.”
Survivors are Mrs. Goodman’s children Karen (Kenneth Glenn) Goodman and Eric (Kelley) Goodman; grandchildren Michael (Melina), Rachel and Gabby; great grandchildren Liam Harold and Liliana Rae; and siblings Jack (Tamara) Rushin and sister Ruth (Roger) Halpin.
Contributions may be made to The Shwayder Camp Fund, Temple Emanuel and The Denver Hospice.
Debra Romans
Denver native Debra Lea Romans died on December 25, 2024. She was 79. A service was held on December 29 at Rose Hill Cemetery, officiated by Rabbi Rick Rheins. Feldman Mortuary made the arrangements.
Born in 1945, Mrs. Romans (née Cohen) attended George Washington High School and CU Boulder, where she earned her degree in political science.
Mrs. Romans worked for the US Navy as a civil servant in San Francisco and Oakland, Calif. There, she met Larry Romans, who was serving in the Navy and was a fellow Denver native and CU alumnus. They were married at Temple Micah in 1969, and settled in their hometown shortly thereafter.
Mrs. Romans, who was adopted at a young age by Faye and Michael Cohen, embarked on a journey in the late 1970s to find her family origins. She connected with her birth family, discovering and forming cherished relationships with her siblings, Rosalie and Jack, and their three children.
In addition to her work as a tax preparer and an insurance underwriter for Great West Life, Mrs. Romans had a passion for travel, her family said.
“Larry did not share that same passion initially but she liked to say that she dragged him along on enough trips that he eventually saw the error of his ways,” her family said.
Mr. Romans passed away in 2004.
Survivors are children Brent and Lisa; and grandchildren Ashley, Alexandria and Nicholas.
Contributions may be made to the Michael J. Fox Parkinson’s Foundation.
© IJN 2025
