Rachel Siegel The Funeral was held at IRA KAUFMAN CHAPEL on Thursday, 28 December 2023 at 1:30 PM. Rabbi Aaron Starr and Hazzan David Propis officiated. Click here to watch a video of the recorded service. Interment at Clover Hill Park Cemetery.
Rachel Siegel (b. Lois Tachna) died peacefully, at the age of 88, on December 25, 2023. She was born on April 17, 1935, during the depression, which gave her a deep appreciation for everything life gave her. Rachel was born and grew up in Detroit, Michigan, and remained a Detroit and Michigan sports fan until her last breath. She was the oldest of two children. Her brother Selden Tachna preceded her in death. She graduated from Detroit Central High School in 1953, started college at the University of Michigan, and received her Bachelor’s degree in Education from Wayne State University.She went on to receive a Masters in Educational Psychology from Wayne State.She was proud to work as a teacher in Oak Park and at St. Michael’s and as a therapist both privately and at The Haven in Pontiac. She married Albert Resnick in 1957 and shortly thereafter they moved to Mahopac, New York, where their first three children, Jeffrey David, Harry Nathan, and Henry Douglas were born. In 1965, she and her family moved back to Michigan and settled in Oak Park, Michigan. In 1966, her son Henry Douglas died from complications from a pertussis vaccine.Her daughter, Sarah Allison, was born in 1969. Because she needed to move on from her childhood,she changed her name from Lois to Rachel in the mid-1970s. In 1987, she met the man who made all of her dreams come true -Peter Siegel. They married on April 30,2000, and lived in West Bloomfield. Very early in their relationship, they began to travel all over the world, something she had only dreamed of doing prior to meeting Peter. Indeed, she went to Israel for the first time with him, even though she had previously sent Jeff, Nathan and Sarah to Israel as teenagers. Rachel was always a strong, independent thinker and a fierce advocate for what was right. She was a Zionist as a child even before the State of Israel was born, which was not a popular thing to do back then even for Jews. She returned to Israel frequently with Peter, including spending many winters there volunteering teaching English to new immigrants. In the 1970s, Rachel discovered she had extraordinary artistic talent and went on to create many beautiful works of art in multiple media, including painting, sculpture, stained glass and woven arts. Her children proudly display many of her works of art in their homes.Rachel played piano and continued to take piano lessons well into her 80s until her dementia made playing piano too difficult. Peter, who is a retired doctor, liked to lovingly joke that Rachel had a genetic defect: she only gave birth to lawyers. While it is true that Jeff, Nathan, and Sarah are all lawyers who have had very successful careers, her children believe it was their mother’s love for advocating for what was right that inspired them to become lawyers. Along with Peter, Rachel was very charitable. During the years they spent their winters in Israel, they received an award from American Friends of Magen David Adom for donating the cost of an ambulance to Israel. Rachel was predeceased by her son Henry Douglas and her brother Selden Tachna. She is survived by her husband Peter Siegel, her children and their spouses Jeff and Sheryl Spitzer-Resnick, H. Nathan and Aurora Resnick, and Sarah Resnick Cohen and Steve Cohen, as well as her grandchildren Joshua Spitzer-Resnick, Zachary and Jordan Resnick, Dylan Resnick, Jonah Cohen and Leah Cohen, and her stepdaughter Carolyn Siegel (Kevin Rhoades). Shiva will be held at Congregation Shaarey Zedek as follows: Thursday: 4:00 - 8:30pm with the congregational minyan at 5:30pm Friday: 1:00 - 5:00pm with the congregational minyan at 5:00pm Sunday: 3:00 - 5:00 pm with congregational minyan at 5:00pm Monday: 3:00 - 5:00 pm with congregational minyan at 5:00pm Tuesday: 3:00 - 5:00 pm with congregational minyan at 5:30pm The family would like to extend its deep appreciation to the caregivers who made it possible for Rachel to live comfortably in her own home in her final years including Brandy Perry-Carter, Takina Washington, Kelly Burns, Jenine Conners,Kendrea Douglas, Sharon Buckner, Latita Green, and Tayna Gaines. Live video-streaming will begin here just before the service time: As the funeral service begins, if you are unable to view the above live-streaming video box, please click here. It is suggested that those who wish to further honor the memory of Rachel Siegel may do so by making a contribution to: American Friends of Magen David AdomClick to Visit Charity Website |