December 15, 2014

Zelda Siegel

Zelda Siegel's parents were both connected to Warsaw. Her mother grew up as a privileged child in the city, with her own nanny and outings to the opera, until circumstances changed that life. Her father, born just outside Warsaw, came to the United States as a young man through Galveston during the brief window when immigrants from Eastern Europe were admitted. Promised a job in San Antonio, he was taken in by the Charlott family, German Jews with whom he lived and worked, eventually buying one of their stores, a jewelry business. He later returned to marry Zelda's mother, who was twelve years younger, and brought her to Texas. Zelda and her brother David were born in San Antonio.

Growing up in San Antonio, Zelda lived on the opposite side of town from most of the city's Jewish families and attended schools with only a few other Jewish children, an experience unlike those who grew up in South Dallas. Her family belonged to the conservative congregation and observed Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur, Passover, and a small measure of Hanukkah. Her father, whose own father had been a rabbi, placed great value on education. Zelda studied at the University of Texas, where she first majored in piano, and at Incarnate Word College. She met Jack Hirsch Siegel when she was sixteen, fell in love, and married him on January 13, 1946, moving to Dallas.

In Dallas, Zelda raised her family and worked in real estate for more than 40 years, far longer than the five she first imagined. She and Jack had children, including two sons; she lost her daughter to breast cancer about ten years before the interview and later became a grandmother and great-grandmother. After leaving real estate, she volunteered for more than six years at the Vickery Meadow Learning Center teaching English as a second language, which she considered a highlight of her life. A devoted supporter of Jewish and civic causes, she reflected warmly on Dallas's growth and cultural life, and urged her grandchildren and great-grandchildren to be the best people they could be and to value a good education.

Read Full Transcript