Funeral Details

Claude will be truly missed, not only at the bridge clubs in Chicago but at the Brookdale Senior Independent Living housing

Eileen Tardy

I met Claude numerous times at Shapiro family gatherings. He was a dear uncle to Elika and much loved by her. What an interesting and full life he led.

Leslie Konek-Schlax

We knew Claude through his membership for more than twenty years in the Inuit Art Society. An enthusiast of Inuit art, he built an impressive collection of carvings and prints, the majority of which he has contributed to the Kenosha Public Museum in Kenosha, Wisconsin. We were fortunate to view Claude's collection on several occasions, and we always enjoyed his stories of how each piece had been acquired and why he thought it was notable.

Claude served on the Board of the Art Society for a number of years, and helped to arrange meetings of the Inuit Art Society in Skokie and later in Kenosha. Many of the members were happy to call Claude their friend. He will be missed.

Kik and Si Gilman

I admired Claud's carrying on in spite of frailty. We spoke at the Clare duplicate bridge game just 4 days before he died. Sincere condolences to his family and bridge friends.

Abigail Nichols

I first met Claude when i came home from school one afternoon in the 70s and he was sitting in my dad’s armchair so i understood he was an important guest. “This is my cousin Cluade” my dad told me. He was a kind man who had time for listening to children. Later in life we became friends and visited each other in Rome and Chicago. He also had a passion for train travel and once my wife and i met him off a train from Zagreb, he stayed with us a few days and then I took him to’ Civitavecchia to board a ferry to Cagliari from whence he travelled by train through Sardinia and Corsica to board another ferry in Isle Rousse to Toulon and on from there by train. He was already in his late 80s. In civitavecchia we ate a platter of crabs, prawns and crayfish which he devoured toothless, he had broken his dentures somewhere in the Balkans.

Stephen Weiss

Elika and family, so sorry for your loss. We send you our prayers for comfort. Claude had such a wonderful life. We hope your memories bring you comfort.
Love Kim and Mark

Kim Mickelson

Claude was a long-time member of the Chicago based Wagner Society of America. He served for some years as Vice-President and then as a board member at large. In addition to the interests listed above he had a stamp collection. He also told me about the family's escape from Germany via Italy and then France. Their ship across the Atlantic Ocean in 1940 was the very last one to make it. We are all very happy that it did.

WILLIAM SMITH

With the departure of Claude I (Ezra) lost my last cousin, who was our most favorable one. Claude, despite being single, was a devoted family person by keeping connections with all his overseas relatives. These included his Israeli family first with my late parents, who were smart to leave Germany to Palestine in 1933, then with my late elder brother Gad who was Claude’s age and then with us, five years younger. We exchanged visits a few times and owing to Claude’s broad knowledge in many subjects it was always extremely interesting to converse with him. Among other countries that he visited, he was extremely interested and knowledgeable in Israeli history, archeology, landscape and politics. Claude was also an unusual kind host. My first visit with him was in the 60’s in his Hyde Park apartment and later several visits (last on in 2017) both of us stayed in his large-windowed apartment in a house designed by the famous Mies van de Rohe, located close to the lake on Diversey Parkway. Having a small guestroom Claude always insisted that we stay in his bedroom while he moved to the guestroom. His apartment was beautifully decorated with tasteful original art and sculptures dominated by his favorable Inuit art. There was never a dull moment during our visits as Claude carefully planned them for us. These included Chicago’s famous museums, boat tours, Michigan Avenue’s beautiful spots including the Millennium Park, in one case with a temporary sculpture of Marilyn Monroe. One of the most exciting visits was a spring visit to the botanical gardens north of Chicago, about halfway to Kenosha, and the list of other places is still long.
Claude was an excellent cook, despite suffering hand tremors (a genetic family defect) he insisted that to we dine with him. On the weekend he used to take us to his favorite Swedish Pancake House sometimes with his late nephew Steve who lived close to him in the same house. 13 years ago we attended Claude’s 80th birthday, organized by his niece Elika Shapiro that included a concert with Izhak Perlman. Between our rare mutual visits we used the exchange periodical emails, his last one was on September 7, 2024, analyzing the current local “inane self-serving warfare” (his words), my response four days later on Sept. 11 arrived too late.
Sad to both of us having lost such a kind, interesting, knowledgeable cousin and close friend whom we shall miss a lot.

Ezra and Ahuva Yagil, Ramat Hasharon, ISRAEL