Ted Weiss

Holocaust survivor Ted Weiss died Feb. 5. He was 86.

Born in Nitra in what is now Slovakia, he became a dental technician. His father was killed in World War I, so he became “the man of the house.”

He was drafted by the Czechoslovakian army. Under the Nazi regime, he was not put into a concentration camp because he was a skilled worker. However, when he heard that even skilled workers were in danger, he found a Christian family to shelter him.

After the war, he met Charlotte Sharkany and married her in 1945. He started his own laboratory, but left Europe because the Communists took over his private practice.

His Orthodox upbringing led the family to resettle in Israel in 1949, where he worked as a mechanic for the air force. Although he thrived there, his wife found the heat overwhelming, and the couple came to Milwaukee, where he worked as a dental technician for 30 years.

He was a former member of Congregation Emanu-El B’ne Jeshurun.

According to his family, Weiss “was a hard-working, quiet man who was concerned with his family and the world. He liked discussing religious themes and his European past with his son and grandchildren. He knew his Judaism and proudly shared his knowledge with the entire family.”

In addition to his wife, he is survived by son Tom (Esther) Weiss of Mequon; two grandchildren; and a great-grandson.

Graveside services were held at Greenwood Cemetery.