She was there for all of the most important aspects of my public relations career. She watched my kids grow up. She dined with my family and shared precious moments with us. We spent countless happy hours together; went to the theater and concerts together; spent time at Hilton Head together; enjoyed annual outings to Atlantic City and tripped the light fantastic in New York. Through it all, I can't even begin to enumerate all the laughs we shared.
Oh, did I mention that Elaine was my trusted secretary at the Philadelphia Bar Association for more than 20 years? And I say "secretary" because although she was more of an administrative assistant, Elaine did not eschew the more traditional title. And why should she? She screened our phone calls, corrected our mistakes, dotted our i's, crossed our t's and even took dictation. You don't know what dictation is? You never heard of shorthand? That's your loss!
Elaine soaked up every moment of life. She had the enviable capacity to enjoy even life's simplest pleasures. She could savor every morsel of a hot dog at a sidewalk pushcart at lunch and then take great delight in lingering over a long gourmet meal in a fine restaurant at dinner. She liked her soup and her coffee "piping hot" and she did not hesitate to request it that way.
Elaine enjoyed traveling, discovering new places and meeting new people. But she also loved Philadelphia and was proud of her home town. She was a devoted fan of the Philadelphia Orchestra and attended many of their concerts. And at the Philadelphia Bar Association she was a favorite of the city's top lawyers who knew they could depend on her. They also enjoyed sharing a joke with her -- even a ribald one now and then.
Among he coworkers at the bar association, Elaine was like a sister, a mother, a cousin, an aunt -- whatever she need to be whenever she needed to be it. In fact, I don't recall an unkind word every being spoken about her.
Elaine helped us through many difficult moments -- even times of crisis; even times when our jobs may have been on the line. She never flinched. She never turned away. She never failed. She never let us down.
Elaine was also devoted to her family -- her three children and two grandchildren. Thank goodness she got to see them all grow up and move ahead in their lives. Indeed, Elaine was blessed with a long, productive life. She keep active almost till the very end. On her 90th birthday she was still sharp and delighting in all the wonderful memories she collected. I hope she knew how much we loved her; how essential she was; how great she made us feel and the comfort she provided in moments big and small.
She will be greatkly missed but her memory will be a soothing blessing to all of us who were fortunate enough to know her.
The obituary:
LIPPE ELAINE (nee ARONBERG) October 17, 2023, mother of Curt Lippe, Steve Lippe and Caren Lippe, sister of Sandy (Elliott) Goldberg, grandmother of Alison and Melissa. Relatives and friends are invited to Funeral Services Sun., 11:30 A.M. precisely, GOLDSTEINS' ROSENBERG'S RAPHAEL-SACKS Suburban North, 310 Second Street Pike, Southampton, PA 18966. Int. Montefiore Cem. Shiva will be observed Sunday only at the home of Sandy and Elliott Goldberg. In lieu of flowers, contributions in her memory may be made to Autism Speaks, www.autismspeaks.org.
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