MITCH SIMON MEMORIAL
DATE OF DEATH FEB 1, 2021. DATE OF MEMORIAL FEB 7TH, 2021
FIFTY SEVEN YEARS IS A LONG TIME TO MAINTAIN A FRIENDSHIP. MITCH WAS NOT ONLY MY BEST FRIEND, HE BECAME MY BROTHER. WE GREW UP IN REGO PARK QUEENS, NY. WE HAD A LARGE GROUP OF FRIENDS GROWING UP. WITHOUT SOCIAL MEDIA WE MANAGED TO GET TOGETHER IN THE PARK ACROSS THE STREET FROM MITCH’S HOUSE TO PLAY BASKETBALL, DOWN TO THE FLEET STREET FIELDS FOR PICK UP BASEBALL AND FOOTBALL GAMES. MITCH’S HOUSE WAS IN THE CENTER OF MUCH OF OUR HOUSES AND IT BECAME THE GATHERING PLACE FIRST TO PLAY WITH HIS HUGE SET OF TRAINS. WHEN IT WAS TIME FOR THE TRAINS TO LEAVE A POOL TABLE SHOWED UP AND MANY OF US GATHERED FOR 8 BALL REGULARLY AT HIS HOUSE. OUR CORE GROUP THOUGH BECAME MITCH, MYSELF, STEVE WEISSGLASS AND DON ROMAN. AT PS 174 WE HAD A CROSSING GUARD SYSTEM, I WAS THE SARGE, MITCH WAS THE LIEUTENANT AND BRUCE BRAFFMAN WAS THE CAPTAIN. WHEN WE MOVED ONTO JHS AND HS, MYSELF MITCH, DON AND STEVE WE WALKED TO AND FROM SCHOOL EVERY SINGLE DAY RAIN OR SNOW. JHS WAS A HALF MILE WALK AND HS WAS A TWO MILE WALK EACH WAY.
LET ME TOUCH A MINUTE ON HIS FAMILY. HIS MOM DIANE IS 91 AND CAN GET THE BEST OF YOU ON POLITICAL TALK. HIS DAD A WORLD WAR II VETERAN USED TO SQUEEZE MY HAND SO TIGHT IT HURT AND OF COURSE HE ALWAYS HAD TO SHOW YOU HIS ONE ARM PUSH UPS. HIS DAD WAS AWARDED THE PURPLE HEART AND TWO BRONZE METALS FOR HIS BRAVERY AND HE WAS AWARDED THE FRENCH METAL OF HONOR, ONE THAT FEW GET.
IN ELEMENTARY SCHOOL WE WERE NOT TOO MUCH INTO GIRLS. IN FACT MITCH WAS PRETTY SHY AROUND GIRLS I BELIEVE EVEN THROUGH COLLEGE THOUGH HE HAD A GREAT BUDDY IN SUE MILLER. BUT IN ELEMENTARY SCHOOL WE DID SNEAK OFF TO THE BASEMENT OF ONE OF THE GIRLS HOUSES TO PLAY SPIN THE BOTTLE AND I THINK MITICH HAD AN EARLY EYE FOR WENDY SILVERMAN. MITCH HAD AN EARLY EYE FOR TROUBLE, HE GOT THROWN OUT MS. SALLY’S CLASS FOR LOBBING A SPIT BALL THROUGH A STRAW. IN CAMP MITCH WAS A LITTLE JEALOUS OF MY EARLY AM WATER SKI SO WHEN I LEFT EARLY AND MADE MY BED, HE MESSED IT UP SO WHEN THE BUNK WAS INSPECTED THEY SAW MY MESSED UP BED AND STRIPPED IT AND MY CUBBY. I GOT IT.
COLLEGE LIFE FOR MITCH WAS FIRST AT SUNY STONY BROOK AND EVENTUALLY ONTO SUNY ALBANY. I CAME TO VISIT HIM ONE WEEKEND AND HE FAILED TO PAY HIS OIL BILL. WE ARE LUCKY TO BE ALIVE, WE ALL SLEPT IN THE KITCHEN WITH THE STOVE AND ALL THE BURNERS ON. WE HAD TROUBLE WITH OIL ONE MORE TIME IN COLLEGE. WE DROVE DOWN TO FLORIDA IN HIS YELLOW VOLKSWAGAN AND HIS CAR BROKE DOWN IN FLORIDA. THEY REPLACED THE OIL IN HIS CAR IN FLORIDA. WHEN HE GOT BACK TO THE FREEZING TEMPERATURES IN ALBANY THE FLORIDA OIL FROZE UP AND HE COULD NOT DRIVE THE CAR FOR WEEKS.
AS YOU KNOW, MITCH BECAME A CHIROPRACTOR AT NATIONAL COLLEGE OF CHIROPRACTIC IN CHICAGO. HE FIRST SWEET LOVE WAS JEAN AND REMAINED FRIENDS TO THIS DAY. AFTER JEAN ONE COULD SAY WOMEN BECAME A VERY BIG PART OF HIS LIFE. . HE LOVED MANY OF THEM, AND I CAN TELL YOU, I COULD HAVE MARRIED MANY HE TURNED AWAY.
DURING THAT TIME THAT HE BROKE UP HIS MARRIAGE TO TRACY, I GOT MARRIED TO MY FORMER SPOUSE BARBARA AND EVENTUALLY HAD TWO CHILDREN, HANNAH AND MELISSA. MITCH USED TO LOVE TO PLAY WITH MY KIDS. HE WOULD CHASE THEM BOTH AROUND THE POOL TABLE AND MORE. LATER IN LIFE, HE LOVED TO PLAY WITH CAROLYN’S DAUGHTER ADDIE AND VERY MUCH ENJOYED BEING PART OF ADDIES LIFE.
I DID A LOT OF THINGS TOGETHER WITH MITCH. HIKED THE APALACHIAN TRAIL, THE LONG TRAIL. TOOK SOME GREAT VACATIONS TOGETHER. ICELAND, BIKING TO CROATIA, PANAMA AND MORE. WE WOULD TALK SOMETIMES THREE TO FOUR TIMES A DAY. LEFT A BIG HOLE IN MY HEART.
WOMEN WERE EASILY ATTRACKED TO MITCH. WE WOULD GO TO DANCES OR THE MFA FIRST FIRDAYS AND WOMEN WOULD CIRCLE AROUND HIM. WE ONCE WENT TO A DANCE AND THIS HOT WOMAN KEPT CIRCLING AND FINALLY CAME UP TO HIM AND SAID MY COUSIN WANTS TO MEET YOU. YES I WAS A LITTLE JEALOUS OF ALL THE ATTENTION HE GOT.
AS I SAID, HE MET SOME GREAT AND WONDERFUL WOMEN. KAREN, LISA, EILEEN, WENDY, SUSAN, JEN, CAROLYNE, KARLA AND MORE. HE LOVED EVERY ONE OF YOU.
MITCH HAD AN UNCANNY ABILITY TO MAKE FRIENDS LATER IN LIFE. HIS CHIRORPACTIC CIRCLE INVOLVED MYSELF, ANDY, STU AND STEVE. WE WOULD GET TOGTHER ALMOST MONTHLY FOR OUR BURGER NIGHTS. BUT HE CONNECTED TO SO MANY OTHERS. CURTIS FOR SUSHI AND BASKETBALL. ALAN FOR TENNIS, DEB FEINBLOOM AND BONNIE BERG,FOR ADVICE, SUE COMMIT FOR CHESS AND MORE, AND, GET TOGETHERS WITH DREW. HE KEPT IN CONTACT WITH FRIENDS NEAR AND FAR. STU HORAN IN CONNECTICUT, SUE MILLLER IN NY AND MORE. HE WAS THE GLUE THAT KEPT MANY TOGETHER.
MITCH GRADUATED CHIROPRACTIC COLLEGE FROM NATIONAL COLLEGE OF CHIROPRACTIC. HIS FIRST JOB WAS AN ASSOCIATE FOR DAVID SINGER ON THE JERSEY SHORE. THEN HE MOVED UP TO BOSTON TO BE WITH HIS FRIEND JEFF BERNSTEIN. MITCH’S FIRST OFFICE WAS IN NATICK MASS. THEN MOVED TO BE WITH DR. BERNSTEIN IN FRAMINGHAM, THEN BOUGHT INTO THE PRACTICE WITH DR. CHERYL RUBIN. HE LEARNED A LOT FROM CHERYL. FINALLY, HE STARTED HIS NEXT PRACTICE IN BRIGHTON, SIMON CHIROPRACTIC. MITCH WAS IN PRACTICE FOR OVER 35 YEARS AND HE LOVED CHIROPRACTIC AND LOVED HIS PATIENTS AND HAD GREAT REVIEWS.
ONE CAN NOT END A TALK WITHOUT DISCUSSING MITCH’S NEW FAMILY. WHEN HIS MOM TOLD HIM JUST FOUR YEARS AGO, THAT HIS FATHER COULD NOT HAVE KIDS DUE TO INJURIES TO HIS BODY FROM THE WAR. HIS DAD AND MOM DECIDED TO HAVE A CHILD BY ARTIFICIAL INSEMINATION BY A POOR MED STUDENT AT MOUNT SINAI. FOR AWHILE HE HAD NO INTEREST IN FINDING OUT ABOUT HIS BIOLOGICAL FAMILY. I PUSHED HIM TO DO 23 AND ME AND WE ALSO WENT TO A TALK AT THE BROOKLINE BOOKSMITH ON SOMEONE WHO ALSO WENT THROUGH THIS. HE BONDED ALSO WITH HIS ONCOLOGIST WHOSE HUSBAND HAD A SIMILAR STORY. 23 AND ME DISCOVERED HIS HALF BROTHER ERIC. ERIC AND HIS SIBLINGS MET AND IMMEDIATELY THEY BONDED. THEY BECAME A VERY IMPORTANT PART OF HIS LIFE AND IT ADDED NEW MEANING TO IT.
I WAS LUCKY TO BE ABLE TO CALL MITCH MY FRIEND, MY BROTHER. I WILL MISS HIM TERRIBLY AND MISS SPEAKING AND TEXTING TO HIM DAILY. SEE YOU ON THE OTHER SIDE.
FEBRUARY 7, 2021. MITCH PASSED FEBRUARY 1, 2021
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