On June 11, Jerald “Jerry” Oppel of Pikesville at 82. He is survived by wife Gail Shaivitz Oppel; children Karen Beth Oppel and Emily (Moses) Gershbein; stepchildren Amanda Shaivitz (Jonathan) Berkowitz and Daniel Scott (Heather) Shaivitz; sister Irene “Buzzie” Himelfarb; granddaughter Tilly Elaine Gershbein; step-grandchildren Ryken Berkowitz, Noah Berkowitz, Colin Matthew Shaivitz and Zachary Ryan Shaivitz; nephews Saul, Joel and Richard; and lifelong friends Roland and Alegra Best. He was predeceased by parents Philip and Yetta Oppel. He was a lifelong learner and lifelong volunteer. He loved the law and read constantly. Among his various leadership roles, he served as president of the Maryland chapter of the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation. He established a scholarship at his alma mater McDaniel College. He was a loyal friend, maintaining a lifelong relationship with his college roommate and fellow prankster, the late Les Alperstein. Aside from reading history, his children and grandchildren, his greatest joys were travel and visiting 16 presidential libraries with his wife, Gail.
Contributions may be sent to Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation, 1400 K St. NW #1200, District Of Columbia, DC 20005; The Associated: Jewish Federation of Baltimore (Attn: Michael Friedman), 101 W. Mt. Royal Ave., Baltimore, MD 21201 or Chizuk Amuno Congregation, 8100 Stevenson Road, Baltimore, MD 21208.
