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SYLVIA WEPRIN: Admired Biology Teacher BY FRED CHERNOW WHERE WERE YOU BORN AND WHERE DID YOU GROW UP? I was born in Cuba. Both my parents came from Lithuania. My father went to Cuba to avoid conscription into the Russian army. He wrote to my mother regularly, called Cuba “Paradise,” and urged her to join him. He described the palm trees, the readily available fresh fruits and vegetables year-round and especially the warm weather. The contrast with Lithuanian blizzards and short summers was very appealing and my mother followed. HOW DID YOU ADJUST TO “PARADISE”? Life in Havana was very comfortable. But when I was three-years-old, my father lost his dry goods business and we couldn’t afford life in Havana. We moved to a small town with a lower cost of living, but we were the only Jewish family. My father was yeshiva educated and my parents kept kosher. Our neighbors accepted us but we had no access to kosher meat or chicken. We ate a lot of fish. WHY DID YOU MOVE TO THE UNITED STATES? After my sister, Natalia, was born, my parents wanted us to grow up with other Jewish families. My father wanted to return to Havana. My mother felt America would be a better choice. She convinced my father that we emigrate to the United States. We moved to Stone Avenue in the Brownsville section of Brooklyn and I attended PS. 184. From there, I went Thomas Jefferson H. S. After that, I was admitted to Brooklyn College as a pre-med student, but could not afford medical school and became a biology teacher instead. I was assigned to Jamaica H. S., where I spent my entire career. I loved every day. Movies were a big part of my adjustment. My family wanted to be ‘very American’ and tried to copy the styles of the stars on the screen. There were no department stores or children’s clothing stores where we lived. My mother had a seamstress make clothes for my sister and myself. She loved Shirley Temple and had the seamstress copy her clothes. I am the big sister in the photo wearing a copy of Shirley Temple’s dress. When I was 17, my father and I went back to Cuba during the summer school vacation. We rode a train from New York to Miami for 26 hours and then flew into Havana. We visited our old house in the small town and Havana. WHAT HAPPENED NEXT? In 1949, I met Saul Weprin and we married the following year. Our first apartment was in a walk up on Legion Street. From there, we moved into Hilltop Village, a co-op in Queens. Along the way, I bore three sons: Barry, now a lawyer with a large private practice who lives in Manhattan and Connecticut; David, a lawyer who served on the New York City Council and the Assembly, who lives in Holliswood; and Mark, a lawyer who won his father’s former seat on the New York State Assembly, who lives in Hollis Hills. I’m proud of all three sons and their families. They all followed my husband, Saul, into law. He was so proud of them and served as a role model with a successful law practice and community service. His advocacy for the people of Queens led to a political career, which included the New York State Assembly, where he rose to its highest position, Speaker of the Assembly. A life-long Democrat, he was an opponent of the death penalty and a supporter of abortion rights. Sadly, he passed away in 1994. His constituents successfully lobbied to have a playground in Bayside named for him, as well as changing street signs from 188th Street to Saul Weprin Way. I retired from my teaching job and spent time with my ten grandchildren and six great grandchildren. What a blessing. I also did volunteer work for the Queens Botanical Garden and was appointed as a member of the Community Planning Board. WHEN DID YOU MOVE TO NST? I came here in 2112 and have loved living here since Day One. I attend most of the programs and enjoy meeting people who knew Saul or one of my sons. My family lives nearby and they are here quite often, especially when the two younger sons are running for re-election. I enjoy staying active and participate in most of the political events. I often recall fondly my days in the classroom teaching high school biology. I was one of the first to teach bilingual biology to the Spanish-speaking students. That was a special treat. Sylvia, in Shirley Temple dress, with her mother and younger sister Sylvia Weprin and Great Granddaughter Leah “Teaching offers many intangible rewards. For me, the best came when a former student in one of my Biology classes called years later to thank me for encouraging him to become a doctor. He was one of the few African-American students I had that year at Jamaica High School. Not only was he an excellent student, but also displayed the caring and compassion every doctor should possess. I guided him toward medicine as a career but lost track of him after graduation. He went on to tell me about his successful practice and his gratitude for my prodding. There’s no greater reward.” 4  NORTH SHORE TOWERS COURIER  ¢  June 2017


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