Obituaries

Muriel Dowby

Muriel Dowby of Phoenix died Dec. 18, 2002. She was 74. She was born in New York City and moved to Arizona from Ohio in 1982. She was a retired bank clerk.

Survivors include her husband Marc; sister, Renee Henriksen of Phoenix; and brother, Mert Venit of San Diego, Calif.

Services were held at Beth Israel Cemetery, with Rabbi Martin S. Scharf officiating. Arrangements were by Sinai Mortuary. Contributions are suggested to Trees for Israel, c/o Jewish National Fund, 1645 E. Missouri Ave., Suite 110, Phoenix 85016.

Gerald Packer

Gerald Robert Packer of Scottsdale died Dec. 21, 2002. He was 74. He was born in Boston and moved to Arizona in 1972. He was a retired salesman and served in the military during the Korean War.

Survivors include daughters, Marci Beliak of Scottsdale and Sherri Moyter of Murrieta, Calif.; sister, Phyllis Zieff of Scottsdale; and four grandchildren.

Services were held in a private home. Arrangements were by Sinai Mortuary. Contributions are suggested to Hospice of the Valley, 1510 E. Flower St., Phoenix 85014; and the Shalom Center, c/o Temple Chai, 4645 E. Marilyn Road, Phoenix 85032.

Esther Perelman

Esther Perelman, age 83, passed away December 17, 2002 in Scottsdale. She was born in Hungary and moved to the Valley 27 years ago from Cleveland. She was a volunteer for Vista Care Hospice and a member of Hadassah and Jewish Women International.

Survivors include her daughters, Sharyn (Howard) Weiss and Renee (Tony) Young; son Ronald Perelman; sister Ruth Schultz; and grandchildren Jason, Kevin, Brett, Heather, Jeremy, Nicole, Shane and Reece. She was preceded in death by her late husband, Sanford Perelman.

Funeral services were held Thursday, December 19th in Sinai Mortuary Chapel in Phoenix. Contributions in her memory are suggested to Ronald S. Hirshberg Foundation for Pancreatic Cancer, 375 Homewood Rd., Los Angeles, CA 90049; or Hospice of the Valley, 5111 N. Scottsdale Rd., #280, Scottsdale, AZ 85250.

Murray S. Shaw

Murray S. Shaw, age 94, passed away in great peace on December 18, 2002. He was a man of manifold creativity, humor, generosity of spirit, and unlimited zest for life.

A master bricklayer and kitchen designer by trade, he was also an accomplished artist and musician. Murray was the author of the "Match Wits with Sherlock Homes" series for children and "Professional Kitchen Design," as well as numerous published articles. He was honored by Arizona Blue Cross/Blue Shield as a "2001 Ageless Hero" for "Love of Learning."

He played in the violin section of the Phoenix Metro Pops Orchestra, entertained on the piano at Kivel Nursing Home and used his many talents in the community to bring about positive civic change. He celebrated 70 years of marriage with his wife Sarah in November.

Murray will be remembered for bringing sunshine and caring to the world and will be missed by his loving family, friends, and by all who knew him. He is survived by his loving wife Sarah of Phoenix; daughters Elaine (Morris) Goldberg of Phoenix and Madeleine (Maurice) Lucien-Brun of Paris, France; grandchildren Alan (Camille) Goldberg, Seth (Roz) Goldberg, Nancy (Mark) Harbin, and step-granddaughter Clara Lucien-Brun; and great-grandchildren Jordan Goldberg, Leah and Brandon Harbin, Jeremy, Jacob and David Goldberg.

Graveside services were held Friday, December 20, 2002 in Beth Israel Cemetery. Donations in his memory are requested to Hospice of the Valley, 1510 E. Flower St., Phoenix, AZ 85014. Arrangements by Sinai Mortuary.

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