Miriam R. Simon of Palm Coast, FL passed away on Monday, April 26, 2010. She was born on July 31, 1921 to Abraham & Esther Rubnitz in Omaha, NE and lived there until moving to Palm Coast in 2001.  Miriam was a graduate of the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, majoring in music education and was a member of SDT Sorority and Mortar Board National Honorary; she received additional training to become a med tech.  In 1945 she married Ervin Simon. Miriam was a lifelong volunteer, particularly for Jewish organizations that she felt very passionate about.  In Omaha she served as president of Hadassah, the Federation of Jewish Women’s Organizations, and Beth El Synagogue Sisterhood.  She was also Chairman of the Women’s Division of the UFA/Federation Campaign and the Vice President of the Jewish Federation of Omaha. She organized and served as the first chairman of the LOVE program for the Elderly and also as the first chairman of the Soviet Jewish Resettlement Committee.  After moving to Florida she continued her volunteer work as Philanthropies Chairman for the Jewish Federation of Volusia & Flagler counties and was twice recognized as Volunteer of the Year for her contributions.  She was a member of Temple Beth Shalom in Palm Coast.

Miriam was predeceased by her husband of 57 years, Ervin Simon; her son, Neil Simon; her sister and brother-in-law, Josephine and Stephen Fraenkel; her sister-in-law and brother-in-law, Lenore and Harvey Aronson; and two nephews. She is survived by her daughters and son-in-laws, Julie and Rainer Martens (Ormond Beach), and Sara and Baruch Gold (Betar Illit, Israel); grandchildren Dania (Alon) Namdar, Chava Gold, Natanel (Galit Shatiel) Gold, Shlomo Gold, and Shirel Gold; great-grandson, Eithan Yisrael Gold; brother and sister-in-law Myron (Susan) Rubnitz (Winnetka, IL); sister-in-law Phyllis Aronson (Omaha, NE); nieces and nephews.

A graveside service will be held at 4:00 p.m. today (Wednesday)  April 28th  at Mt. Sinai Cemetery, Daytona Beach.  For transportation from Palm Coast, call 386-677-0451.

In lieu of flowers, donations in Miriam’s memory may be made to the Jewish Federation of Volusia & Flagler Counties, 470 Andalusia Ave, Ormond Beach, FL 32174; the Pancreatic Cancer Action Network, 2141 Rosecrans Ave, Suite 7000, El Segundo, CA 90245; or a charity of your choice.