Anita Kerzner, 96

PROVIDENCE, R.I. – Anita Shirley Kerzner passed away on June 5.  She was the beloved wife of the late Harold L. Kerzner.  Born in Central Falls, she was a daughter of the late Edward and Anna (Mogilevkin) Kalman. Anita and Harold lived for 65 years in the house they built in 1949, in the Darlington section of Pawtucket.

Anita is survived by her devoted son Jay J. Kerzner and his husband Paul Colarik, of San Diego, California; her loving niece Sheila (Glassman) Gleckman and her husband Robert, of Connecticut; dear friend Sylvia Weber; two grandchildren, five great-grandchildren, and many other nieces, nephews and cousins. She was the mother of the late Barry M. Kerzner and sister of the late Daisy Kalman, Morris Kalman and Dorothy Loupus.

After raising her sons, Anita earned undergraduate and graduate degrees from Rhode Island College and Salve Regina University, and became a passionate social-work advocate for her adult daycare clients.  She was an active member of Congregation Ohawe Sholam of Pawtucket and served as president of the Jewish War Veterans Women’s Auxiliary and the Sisterhood. Anita enjoyed time with family and friends, theater, golfing, cooking and international travel.

Anita studied languages including French, Portuguese and Spanish, and she spoke fluent Yiddish, which she enjoyed teaching to her caregivers at Hallworth House in Providence, where she spent her last years. She survived COVID-19 but succumbed to its after-effects.

Anita will be interred at Fort Rosecrans National Cemetery in San Diego, California, next to her beloved husband of 75 years. Contributions in her memory may be made to Jewish Collaborative Services of Rhode Island, 1165 North Main St., Providence, RI 02904 or www.jcsri.org.