Obituary of Esther Kieval

Albany, New York Esther Wall Kieval, 89, died peacefully July 21, 2010, at the Daughters of Sarah Nursing Center in Albany, NY. She was born in Poland to Gittel and Leibel Wall on November 23, 1920 and arrived with her family at Ellis Island on July 4, 1921. She lived in Denver, CO until the age of six, when the family moved to the lower East Side of New York City. She attended the city's public schools and graduated from Washington Irving High School. She studied business administration and French at Hunter College, and in 1942 became the first woman in her family to earn a bachelor's degree. She also attended the Teacher's Institute of the Jewish Theological Seminary of America, where she met the love of her life, Rabbi Hayyim Kieval. They married on November 22, 1942 and she was his devoted companion and adviser throughout their 49 years of marriage. She served as rebbitzin to congregations in Ventnor, NJ; Grand Rapids, MI; and Pittsburgh, PA before coming to Temple Israel in Albany, NY in 1954. After retirement in 1987, she and Rabbi Kieval moved to Brookline, MA, where she remained for many years after his death in 1991 before returning to Albany in 2008. She was fervently devoted to her family and her Jewish faith and worked tirelessly alongside her husband in pastoral, educational and spiritual realms. She was an advocate for fashioning and perpetuating authentic Jewish life and education, and was active in the sisterhood at Temple Israel and the Yiddish language club, which she helped to establish. She was also a persuasive fund raiser for the Jewish Theological Seminary in New York, State of Israel Bonds and other charitable organizations. She loved entertaining, spending time with family and friends, and had a deep affection for the Berkshires and Tanglewood, where she and Rabbi Kieval spent many joyous summers. Along with her husband, she was deeply dedicated to ecumenicism and worked with him to found the Hayyim Kieval Institute for Jewish-Christian Studies at Siena College. Following his death, she continued to attend its yearly colloquia and was awarded the Francis Medal by Siena College for her efforts in building bridges between the Jewish and Catholic communities of the Capital District. Mrs. Kieval was renowned for her sparkling personality and sensitivity to others, which made her deeply beloved by everyone with whom she came in contact. Her genuine fondness for all people forged instant connections which lasted lifetimes. She was predeceased by her beloved husband, Rabbi Hayyim (Herman) Kieval, two grandchildren, Madeleine Elise Kieval Brill and Jonathan Gabriel Kieval, and, most recently, her brother, Rabbi Max (Meir) Wall. She is survived by her brother, Cantor Isaac I. Wall, of Ventor, NJ, her sister, Florence Wall Gallop, of Brookline, MA, and her sister-in-law, Miriam (Mimi) Wall, of Burlington, VT. She is also survived by her children, Sasona Goodblatt and her husband, Dr. David Goodblatt, of Encinitas, CA; Dr. Shalom Kieval and his wife, Rabbi Rena Kieval, of Delmar, NY; Tamar Kieval Brill and her husband, Dr. Gary Brill, of Somerset, NJ; and Dr. Raphael Kieval, and his wife, Nadine Evans, of Sharon, MA; and by her grandchildren, Keren Goodblatt, Dr. Michael Goodblatt and his wife, Kathy, Grace Goodblatt, David Kieval and his wife, Emily, Daniel Kieval, Zachary Brill, Jacob Kieval, Adam Kieval, and Sarah Kieval, and by many nieces, nephews and friends. She will be profoundly missed by all. Funeral services will be held at noon on Friday, July 23, at Levine Chapel, 470 Harvard St. in Brookline, MA. Shiva will be observed on Saturday night from 9-10 pm and Sunday evening from 7-9 pm at the home of Jennifer Gallop and Rabbi David Starr, 4 Alton Court, Brookline, MA; on Sunday noon - 5 and Monday noon - 5 and 7-9 p.m. at the home of Rafi Kieval and Nadine Evans, 26 Glendale Rd, Sharon, MA; and Tuesday and Wednesday from 2-5 and 7-9 p.m. at the home of Shalom and Rabbi Rena Kieval, 138 Darroch Rd, Delmar NY. Memorial contributions may be made to the Torah Fund: Women's League for Conservative Judaism at the Jewish Theological Seminary of America, 3080 Broadway, New York 10025, or to the Yad Yonatan Chesed Committee of Congregation Ohav Shalom, 113 New Krumkill Rd., Albany NY 12208.