Solomon and Kadie Fleischer
My maternal grandmother is Annie Nee Fleischer Kirschenbaum. (1875-1950)
Annie’s parents are Solomon Fleischer and Kadie Nee Roshwalp Fleischer.
Annie had 3 daughters:
· Sarah Kirschenbaum married Mayer Licht,
· Ruth Kirschenbaum married Nathan Golden
· Elsie Kirschenbaum married Fred Goldstein.
Annie had 2 sisters:
· Frieda Fleisher (1886- ? ) (married Jacob Haffner (1879-1996)
· Rose Fleischer (1884- ? ) married Max Goldman (1883- ? )
Rose had 3 daughters:
· Rita, who had 2 children
· Elsie
· Sylvia, who had 2 children
Frieda had 3 children
· Joe Haffner (1917-1981), married Dorothy Nee Gordon.
· Gertrude Haffner (1926-1994)
· Claire Nee Haffner married Charlie Latker.
When I was in the U S Army Band Training Unit at Camp Lee, Virginia, I wanted to get a pass to visit New York. My first visit to New York was 12/30/1946
I had become friendly with fellow clarinetist Irwin Lipton. I also played the Alto saxophone, and he also played the tenor saxophone. He was born in Brooklyn, was Jewish, and had worked for a commercial airline before being drafted. I sat with him, going and coming from the visit to New York. I was on my way to visit the Fleisher family, and he visited his family and friends in Brooklyn. We talked about our life ambitions, basic training, clarinet and saxophone playing, the bands and musicians of the swing era at that time. He disliked Brooklyn and hoped to live abroad for a while. Years later, Caroiynn and I went to NY and visited Irwin Lipton several times. The first time we met him at a restaurant, he arrived in a suit and tie, overcoat, and hat, and checked the coat and hat at the coat check room. All the staff knew him and addressed him as Mr.Lipton. He was sophisticated and formal, compared to our CA's informality. He was working for Maidenform, famous for their ads ‘ I dreampt I went … in my Maidenform bra’., He had an infant daughter, Amy, and his wife, Sandra, was in the hospital, seriously ill with cancer. Shortly after that, she passed away. The last visit was when we wrote we would be in New York on Sept. 26, 1996, and wanted to see him. He answered with a handwritten note: My personal situation has deteriorated, my company had forced retirement at 65, and I allowed myself to drift away from activities. It will be a pleasure to see you and Carolynn. My address is 7600 River Road, No Bergen, New Jersey, room 531. We went to see him; he was in a nice-looking retirement facility with a view of Manhattan across the water. He told us he didn’t want to live there, and he wasn’t allowed to leave alone. He was interested in how many children we had, etc. We were very sad when we learned he didn’t remember knowing me or having been in the US Army with me. Amy later told me he passed away in 2005 after 10 years with dementia.
Irwin and I got on a train in Petersburg at 5:30 pm, which had come from Florida. The train went through Washington, DC, Baltimore, Maryland, Wilmington, Delaware, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Trenton, and Newark, New Jersey, and arrived in New York at 3:00 am.. Irwin left me at Pennsylvania Station. Outside, it was very dark, with light rain and overcast. so could see the bottom of buildings, but nothing above me. I went to the subway, which was nearly deserted and dirty. I asked for directions, and most of the people there were drunk. I got off at Broadway and Times Square, which was very dark. I found the USO, which was closed. In 10 minutes, 5 people asked me for a nickel for a cup of coffee. I walked to Grand Central Station, which was a gigantic size, and I slept there. Then I took a cab to the Rokerfeller Center at 6:30 am. I went to a restaurant, and when I got back to Radio City Music Hall, there was a line of people a block long. An organ played when entering. First there was a movie, then a show by the famous Rockets. There was a stage orchestra, beautiful scenery, and coordinated dance routines. When I went outside at 11:00 am, it was sunny and bustling with people. I could see the many great high-rise buildings above me; it was a dramatic and unforgettable sight. As Dorothy said in The Wizard of Oz, 'This isn’t Kansas anymore. I went to the top of the RCA building, which is 70 stories high, 850 feet, and had a marvelous view.
I walked on Broadway from 50th Street to the Empire State Building at 34th Street. Joe Haffner’s office was on the 79th floor. He showed me around the office of Forge Mills. He is working and going to school 3 nights a week. There were men and women in the office, about the same age as Joe, and they seemed to be happy. A small plane had crashed into that same floor. He took me to lunch at a nice restaurant, Long Champs. I did some more sightseeing and then went back to Joe’s office. He walked with me up Fifth Avenue to Grand Central Station, put me on a train to New Rochelle. The train went through Mount Vernon. Clara met me at the station, took a cab to the Haffner home at 5:30 pm. We had tea and cookies. There I met Aunt Frieda, Gertrude, and Clara’s husband, Charlie. Gertrude’s boss and his two sisters were there visiting. Aunt Rose and Elsie came over for dinner, and later Rita, her husband, and a friend of the family. I went to meet Mr. Haffner at this store, and got back to their home at 10:00 pm. Charlie drove to an Italian restaurant, brought a dish of cheese and tomatoes in a pie crust for a snack. Went to bed at 12:00 pm., got up Sunday at 11:00 am. Said goodbye to the Haffners at 2:00 pm, went to the apartment of Elsie and Aunt Rose. Went into N Y with Elsie at 3:00 pm, took a cab to Times Square to see the lights at night. Had dinner, took the subway to Penn Station, left with Irwin Lipton at 7:30 pm, arrived at Camp at 5:00 am".
“Dear Grandma, Claire’s husband Charlie said if I come again, go right to New Rochelle, any time, he has a car, he would like to show me around. He has known Clara since she was 16.
He has an air medal and 3 oak leaf clusters. When he was a gunner over Germany in the Army Air Corps, he showed me his album of snapshots and citations. I played ping pong with Charlie and Joe. Aunt Frieda and her daughters are strictly kosher. She worried about me like you, that I wasn’t getting enough sleep, and made me wear an overcoat outdoors. She cooked a dinner of grieven (fried chicken fat – tasty, high cholesterol), soups, steak, and potatoes, covered with browned onions – like you do it. She said you are a good cook, and she learned a little from you. She remembered.
Aunt Rose looks wonderful, resembles you, is not happy in New York, and wants to go to CA or Florida. Rita and her husband seem older than the others. settled down in family life, they have two children, and they bought a fur coat from Nate Golden. I don’t know her married name.
Elsie is young and modern, talks and laughs like Sylvia, she has a resemblance to my mother, she has 2 children, who were visiting in Brooklyn, I don’t know her married name.
Sylvia lives in Southern CA. One time, when I was on an annual visit with my sister and I used to stay at Joe and Leah Lanfeld’s home, Sylvia and her boyfriend took me to the horse races at Santa Anita racetrack. Her boyfriend was well dressed, studied the racing form newspaper between each race, and decided which horse he liked, then made a bet. So I had met Sylvia before 1946, my mother had been in touch with her”. Rose Goldman with Sylvia had visited my grandmother in S F and had met me and my sister Carolynn, before I visited New Rochelle.
Gertrude wrote to my mother, Sarah. “We enjoyed having Norman with just so much; he is a grand boy, and we like him very much. We are hoping he will get a chance to come to see us again real soon. We think Norman looks a lot like you, compared to your pictures. Norman has a good personality. Our dog took a fancy to Norman and wouldn’t leave him alone. He followed him all over the house”. Elsie wrote to Sarah, “We all love Norman, and it is certainly nice to meet one of our long lost San Francisco clan. If he is representative of you all, it would be wonderful to meet the rest”.
Joe Haffner visited the Kirschenbaum family at 320 Colon Ave, SF, when he returned from the US Army Air Force service in the Far East during World War II. I have a photo of Joe in uniform with Abe and Annie Kirschenbaum, Mayer and Sarah Licht, their children Norman and Carolyn, Nathan and Ruth Golden, and their daughter Arlene. Elsie and Fred Goldstein are absent, and it was before their daughter Gail was born.
I searched for many years for any record about Joe and obtained his obituary in 2006,
I was sorry to learn that he passed away on July 23, 1981. He was born Jan. 16, 1917, and died at age 63. He was born in New Rochelle, N. Y. He was a C.P.A., operated his accounting firm in New York for 25 years. He graduated from New York University. He resided in Rye Town, N. Y. for 19 years. He was a member of B’nai B’rith and Congregation Kneses Tifereth Israel. He was survived by his wife of 34 years, Dorothy Nee Gordon Haffner, and their five children.
His children are Susan Haffner of CA, Stephen, Joan, and Barbara Berkowitz of Rye Town, N.Y..
He is survived by his sisters, Gertrude Haffner of Mount Vernon and Claire Latker of Columbus, Ohio.
Stephen Haffner (1950-2025) passed away at age 75. He graduated from Port Chester High and Boston University. He joined the family accounting firm and later ran it until retirement. He enjoyed playing basketball, traveling the world, and the arts. He was known for his quick wit, sharp intelligence, and boundless generosity – qualities that endeared him to all who knew him. Above all, he was a devoted and loving father. His daughters are Caroline Haffner and her husband Ryan Fairhurst, and Casey Haffner and her husband Bronco Pavlin. His adored grandchildren are Harper Fairhurst and Ava Pavlin also survive him. His sisters, Joan Haffner of Nyack, New York, and Barbara Haffner of Boynton Beach, Florida, also survive him. He is predeceased by his sisters, Susan Haffner of Berkeley, and Margie O’Hora of Stony Point, New York.
Stephen’s sister, Marjorie O’Hora of Stony Point, N Y, passed away in 2006. She is survived by her beloved husband Patrick and her loving son Joseph Catalono of Pomona, N Y., her late brother Stephen Haffner, and her sisters, Barbara Berkowitz of Boca Raton, FL, and Joan Hernandez of Stony Point, NY. Marjorie was employed by Integrity Insurance Co. in Paromus, NJ, for 21 years as their Accounts Manager.
Stephen Haffner’s daughter, Caroline Fairhurst, lives in Milford, CT. She graduated from Sacred Heart University and Fairfield University. She is a licensed professional counselor at a private practice called Healthy Healing Psychotherapy.