There are some people who surprise you, people with whom you form relationships that were unexpected. People from whom you learn and grow far beyond what you imagined or could have expected.

For me, Norbert Strauss is one of those people. I first met Norbert about four years ago, when I “inherited” him as one of the writers with whom I would have direct contact going forward. I reached out to him via email, by way of introduction, and his response was immediate: He wanted to come into the office to meet with me.

The following week, I had my first and only in-person meeting with Norbert. He came into the office, impeccably dressed in a suit, with a professional but huge smile on his face.

And we talked. We discussed “business” a bit, but mostly we just got to know one another, even though we did not meet for that long. I was immediately impressed with Norbert’s kindness and gentleness, but also by his strength. I looked forward to working with him.

Readers of The Jewish Link know what has transpired during these past four years. Norbert has graced our pages with story after story of his “personal history,” in a column with that very name. We learned about his “stories,” and so much more. We got to know Norbert, and his loving wife, Dorothy, through these stories, and I know that I, at least, learned so much about resilience and fortitude, in addition to history, from reading his words.

One of my favorite of Norbert’s stories was when he described his audience with the secretary general of the United Nations. He recounted his personal recollection of Kristallnacht to “His Excellency,” and fortunately escaped the $1,000 “fine” that often accompanied such a meeting. (If you’ve forgotten, re-read “Kristallnacht at the UN” from February, 2019). To me, being invited to speak at the UN is a very big deal. Not for Norbert, who clearly handled it, like everything else, with aplomb.

Norbert and I exchanged emails fairly regularly, and if I hadn’t heard from him in a while I would sometimes email just to make sure that he and Dorothy were all right. I loved that he was so tech savvy, and not just “for someone his age.” Several times, we needed him to send us something in a different way, and he was always able to do so. He easily got the hang of our submission system, including photos, when many others younger than he had difficulty. His age never slowed him down.

In the days following Purim a year or two ago, I returned to the office to find a beautiful mishloach manot bag on my desk that Norbert had brought to the office for me. His kindness was very much appreciated.

He warned me a number of months ago that his stories were winding down but, to me, Norbert is the Energizer bunny. He “keeps going, and going and going.” I didn’t really think he meant it.

I was wrong. As you read on our cover this week, we have likely seen Norbert’s final article. I hope you have all enjoyed his column as much as we have enjoyed having him in our pages.

Norbert, my friend, you will be missed. Please stay in touch!

By Jill Kirsch